Belarus might switch to chip cards

- The National Bank of Belarus and Belarusian banks will consider a possibility to switch to chip cards, Chairperson of the Board of the National Bank Nadezhda Yermakova said during an online conference and a question and answer session at BelTA.

“The possibility to switch to microprocessor-based cards of the EMV standard will be explored together with other Belarusian banks within the framework of the Cashless Transactions Committee of the Association of Belarusian Banks (subcommittee “Payment cards, electronic currency, and other instruments”). After that the National Bank will decide on further actions concerning the issue of microprocessor-based cards,” Nadezhda Yermakova specified.

Belarusian banks already issue cards of the EMV standard, and 96% of the software and hardware infrastructure in Belarus accept chip cards.

“The issue of microprocessor-based cards of the EMV standard, developed by international payment systems, will help considerably reduce fraudulent transactions,” Nadezhda Yermakova underlined. In comparison with a magnetic strip card, a chip card is not only more functional, but also has a higher degree of operational safety, as a cardholder should enter a PIN code to confirm the right to use it instead of just putting his/her signature.