Mastercard has released a statement stating that ‘multiple financial institutions’ in Russia have been blocked from the Mastercard payment network.
This comes as Western Leaders enforced sanctions upon Russia as they cut off certain banks from SWIFT, the global networking interbank.
Since last Wednesday when Russia declared war and invaded Ukraine, global banking operators have implemented their own sanctions against Russia in accordance to regulation.
“Our first priority has been the well-being of our employees and their families,” stated Michael Miebach, CEO of Mastercard in a company statement.
“Our teams are working around the clock to help secure their safety, using all the resources at our disposal. We will keep our employees in mind throughout the region as we navigate through this crisis.”
Miebach added: “As a result of sanction orders, we have blocked multiple financial institutions from the Mastercard payment network.”
Banks such as HSBC severed ties with Russian financial institutions, one of them being Russia’s second-largest bank VTB.
The Mastercard statement goes on to say that its cyber and intelligence teams are working with governments around the world to ensure ‘stability, integrity and resiliency’, of its systems.
Miebach commented: “We are committed to active monitoring and rapid response to cyber-attacks, the threat of which is heightened significantly in the present environment.
“We are also working with our partners to direct funding and humanitarian aid where it can provide the greatest impact.
“We announced a $2 million contribution to the Red Cross, Save the Children and our employee assistance fund for humanitarian relief. We will actively pursue additional opportunities to assist aid organisations to play our part in supporting the global relief effort.”
