The risks of increasing the cost of production are mentioned in the letter of the President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sergei Katyrin to the chairman of the Central Bank Elvira Nabiullina dated October 6 (Izvestia got acquainted with it). The Chamber of Commerce and Industry asks to return the reduced 1% commission for acquiring for purchases on the Internet, otherwise prices will rise.
From April 15 to September 30, the Central Bank has limited the maximum value of acquiring commissions for online purchases 1%. We are talking about contactless transactions on the Web. Until that moment, they averaged 1.2-2.2%, depending on the type of card or category of goods, the Bank of Russia pointed out. But with the spread of the coronavirus, distance selling has become more important for the population and businesses.
Now banks are increasing the commission for online stores for paying for goods with cards. The return of tariffs to real pre-crisis values of 3-4% (depending on store turnover) will negatively affect online business, the letter of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry said. There is a risk of an increase in prices for products, that is, this issue will not bypass the population, the letter noted. Alexei Fedorov, chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Committee for the Development of Electronic Commerce, told Izvestia that a return to normal tariffs could provoke a rise in prices for goods up to 5%, he said.
The limitation of acquiring commissions was temporary in nature and was aimed at supporting small and medium-sized businesses during the pandemic, the press service of the Central Bank told Izvestia. They recalled that the regulator had already announced that it was ready to continue a dialogue on this issue with all involved market participants when the situation returned to normal.
Read more in the exclusive material of Izvestia:
Phantom commission: return of old acquiring rates will accelerate prices on the Internet