The largest Russian banks and marketplaces have entered into an open conflict over the discount system that the platforms offer to customers when paying for goods with "affiliated" cards. In the fall, this dispute escalated sharply: banks publicly stated that such practices violate competitive conditions and require legislative intervention.
Representatives of the financial sector claim that differentiated price tags, depending on the payment bank, create a bias in the market of payment instruments. The banking community insists that the platform should not set a separate price for a specific card, otherwise all other participants will find themselves in unequal conditions. Sberbank, VTB, T-bank, Alfa-Bank and Sovcombank even sent a letter to the country's leadership asking them to fix uniform pricing rules in the law and prohibit marketplaces from investing in discounts.
Later, the banks softened the wording, stating that they were not opposed to the discounts themselves, but to linking them to a specific means of payment. However, they did not comment on the proposal to completely ban investment discounts from the sites. Against this background, German Gref stated that marketplaces underpay significant amounts of taxes, and the discounts provided are "paid for by virtually everyone."
Marketplaces react differently. Ozon proposed to expand the loyalty program so that the "green price tags" could be used by customers of various banks willing to finance such programs. Wildberries, Avito and Ozon signed a memorandum on fair practices, but Yandex and Sberbank refused to join. Many market players are confident that regular retail simply cannot subsidize discounts on the same scale as the largest platforms.
In response to criticism, Wildberries claims that discounts funded by the platform do not change sellers' income and do not affect their tax base. Moreover, according to the company, a complete ban on such mechanics will lead to a 15-20% rise in the price of goods, accelerated inflation and long-term risks for the market.
The regulator occupies an intermediate position. The head of the Central Bank, Elvira Nabiullina, believes that discounts linked to payment cards are a hidden tool of competition and require discussion. The Ministry of Finance also emphasizes that some players do not fully comply with tax regulations, and are preparing regulatory measures together with the Federal Tax Service.
Some independent experts criticize banks for trying to limit competition. Oleg Deripaska called on credit institutions to "take care of their own prices," offering to reduce loan rates and commissions instead of fighting discounts on marketplaces. According to the businessman, this is the only way banks will be able to retain customers.
The situation remains tense, and the outcome of the dispute will depend on future legislative decisions. In the meantime, both sides continue to look for arguments that will allow them to maintain their influence on the rapidly growing e-commerce market.
