MOSCOW, February 21. /TASS/. The Bank of Russia has revoked the banking license of Qiwi Bank due to numerous violations and involvement in high-risk transactions. This is the first time a banking license has been revoked in almost two years. The bank is a participant in the deposit insurance system.

"The Bank of Russia informs about the decision to revoke the license for banking operations from the credit institution Qiwi Bank from February 21, 2024," the regulator said in a statement.

The Bank of Russia noted that Qiwi Bank is not a significant lender to the real sector of the economy.

"The bank’s activities were characterized by involvement in high-risk transactions aimed at ensuring settlements between individuals and shadow businesses, including transfers of funds in favor of crypto exchangers, illegal online casinos, bookmakers, etc., as well as the search for new ways to circumvent regulations introduced by the regulator restrictions," the Bank of Russia noted.

According to the regulator, there were numerous cases when the bank opened Qiwi wallets using the personal data of individuals without their knowledge and conducting transactions on them, which created significant risks for citizens.

In addition, the bank systematically violated the requirements of legislation in the field of combating the legalization (laundering) of proceeds from crime and the financing of terrorism.

The Bank of Russia sent the information about transactions carried out by the bank that had signs of committing criminal offenses to law enforcement agencies, the regulator said.

"Cessation of the bank’s activities will not have a significant impact on the ability of citizens, entrepreneurs and legal entities to make payments and transfers, including without opening an account, through other credit institutions and payment systems," the regulator said.

In terms of assets, Qiwi Bank ranked 89th in the banking system of the Russian Federation. According to available data, the bank has about 15 million virtual wallets open.

About license revocation

The revocation of Qiwi Bank's license was the first in almost two years. The year 2023 was the first year when not a single banking license was revoked. In December, Deputy Chief of the Bank of Russia Alexey Guznov said that this indicates the stability of the banking system and the effectiveness of the previously implemented financial recovery program.

In 2022, the Bank of Russia revoked only two licenses from banks and another from a non-bank credit institution. This was the lowest number of licenses revoked in the last 10 years.