A new money transfer system will start operating in Armenia in 2017. Russian money transfer systems previously work directly with local banks.
The initiative was put forward by the National Bank of Armenia. It is expected that this will increase the transparency of transfers. But the Russian participants of the market are afraid that excessive regulation can block their access to the market, Kommersant reports with reference to the participants of the Russian market of remittances, which received the letter from the National Bank.
"The National Bank of Armenia initiated the establishment and implementation of the Armenian united system of money transfers without opening an account under the name ARUS," the letter says. The system is planned to be launched in August-September 2017. The National Bank of Armenia confirmed this information.
According to the Russian Central Bank, $103 million were transferred from Russia to Armenia in the first quarter of this year. Thus, Armenia came in sixth place among the CIS countries in the volume of money transfers from Russia to abroad.
An associate Professor of the department of corporate finance, investment planning and evaluation of M.A. Limitovsky at RANEPA, Alexander Arshavsky, speaking with a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, pointed out that, in fact, such a system would create additional risks for ordinary people who transfer money to Armenia from Russia.
"On the one hand, indeed, it will increase transparency of transfers to Armenia for the state, and it can make some people to stop using electronic money transfers. In addition, transaction fees may increase, though not by much, since the competition would keep prices for this service from going up. But if there are additional costs, they will not avoid these commissions," he noted.
The expert also added that this Armenian innovation will not affect Russian banks.
