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Russia’s Planned Payment Network Would Shield Transfers from US Detection
By Colby Adams
printPlans by Russia to develop an independent payment network could limit the U.S. government's window into illicit finance in the federation, say analysts. Visa and MasterCard's temporary rejection of payments to and from Bank Rossiya has rekindled enthusiasm among Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin, to establish a national payment network as a means to shield the country's economy from Western sanctions. Russian lawmakers initially proposed the plan in a 2010 draft bill. The American companies, which currently control over 85 percent of Russia's international payment market, suspended their services in response to the bank's March 19 designation by the...
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