Russia Launches Mir Payment System in Cuba - Operator

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Mir Payment System is a Russian card payment system for electronic money transfers, established by the Central Bank of Russia in 2017. It was created to reduce dependence on foreign payment systems such as Visa and Mastercard, which were blocked in the country due to sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union.
Sputnik
Cuba now accepts cards of Russia's national payment system Mir, allowing tourists to pay with them in shops, at hotels and restaurants, the National Payment Card System (NSPK) said on Tuesday.
"The Mir payment system has started accepting Russian payment cards at POS [point of sale] terminals in Cuba," the NSPK said, adding that the cards would first be accepted "in the most popular tourist locations, for example in Havana and Varadero," and extend their reach later.
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In March, cash withdrawals from Mir cards became available in Cuba, with some 3,000 transactions to date.
Mir cards are now accepted by partner banks in Abkhazia, Belarus, Cuba, Vietnam, Venezuela, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and South Ossetia.