Mastercard and Visa block in Russia does not stop domestic purchases

Russia’s Mir payment system is likely to gain more users after the Mastercard and Visa decision. Photograph: Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters

Consumers will still be able to use Mastercard and Visa-branded cards for domestic transactions in Russia, the country’s state-backed payments network has said, reducing the impact of the US firms’ decision to pull services over the invasion of Ukraine.

Russia’s homegrown payments system Mir said the cardholders would still be able to access their funds, make withdrawals and domestic transfers – at least until their bank cards expire.