Banks have restricted transactions with the MMC code (Merchant Category Code) "Gambling" using the card's "credit limit."
This was reported by Maryna Pavlenko, a leading financial monitoring expert at GLOBUS BANK.
According to her, these restrictions comply with the resolution of the Board of the National Bank of Ukraine dated June 21, 2024, No. 72 "On Amendments to the Resolution of the Board of the National Bank of Ukraine dated February 24, 2022, No. 18" in execution of the decision of the National Security and Defense Council dated April 20, 2024, "On Countering the Negative Consequences of Gambling in the Internet Network."
"Banks have initiated certain settings and restrictions that make it impossible to conduct 'gambling' transactions attempted by clients using credit funds. In addition, an important aspect is the implementation of a large-scale information campaign about the dangers of gambling, methods of prevention, and treatment of gambling addiction," she said.
Additionally, according to the expert, such restrictions can be considered part of a global strategy to combat "black" p2p transfers, which involves the introduction of limits on the number and amounts of transactions.
"It should be noted that the new possible restrictions on amounts (up to 100,000 UAH per month) and the number of transactions (30 transactions per month) will only apply to p2p transfers. At the same time, other funds (salary, pension, scholarship, family assistance, etc.) can be received into the account. Such restrictions do not apply to payments in retail networks or the purchase of any goods. Thus, for the average cardholder, essentially no changes will occur: over 95% of citizens will not feel the new 'limits," emphasized Maryna Pavlenko.
