YEREVAN, February 3. /ARKA/. Last week, the Central Bank of Armenia decided to reduce the fees banks charge businesses for cashless payments, Central Bank Governor Martin Galstyan announced.
He said the decision was made in response to numerous requests from businesses reporting fees of 2-4% for cashless payments.
“Starting March 1, the maximum rates will be 0.5% for cards of the national ArCa payment system and 0.9% for international cards,” Galstyan said, adding that international payment systems Visa and Mastercard apply their own fees.
According to Galstyan, in the next stage, the regulator will assess whether fees have been a factor hindering the development of cashless payments. He also noted that the level of fees in Armenia is slightly higher than the global average.
“According to the Central Bank’s estimate, the damage to Armenia’s banking system as a result of these restrictions will amount to approximately 2 billion drams,” Galstyan said.
The government is continuing the gradual transition to cashless payments. According to a government decision, starting April 1, 2026, all government payments, including pensions and benefits, will be made exclusively in cashless form.-0-
