“To whom will you justify the tariff increase?” - Uzcard and Humo commissions were discussed at the Central Bank

“To whom will you justify the rate increases?” — Uzcard and Humo commissions discussed at the Central Bank

On October 5, a round table dedicated to commissions in banking and payment services was held at the Central Bank. It was attended by representatives of commercial banks, payment organizations, payment systems, and the media.

The discussion revolved around how Uzcard and Humo rates are formed and how their increases affect banks and end consumers.

“The benefit is accumulating in payment systems”

According to economist Otabek Bakirov, the main topic of discussion should be the commissions paid by consumers and why they are rising.

He stressed the need to focus on the profitability and tariff policies of payment systems at a time when banks and payment organizations are saying very little profit remains from their services.

“Some opinions were expressed here calling it low-margin. The activities of payment systems making trillions in profit can by no means be called low-margin.

One of the leaders of the National Bank expressed a very good thought: almost nothing is left for the bank. Nothing is left for payment organizations either. If we take the last one and a half to two years into account, all the interest and beneficiary status are accumulating in the pockets of payment systems. We need to discuss this very issue. The main issue to ask our regulator should be to direct the radar of regulation toward this side,” Bakirov said.

The economist stated that the expansion of the payments market and turnover should also be taken into account when evaluating tariffs. According to him, at a time when the volume of transactions is increasing, one cannot limit oneself to merely citing rising costs.

Bakirov specifically noted that he is not asking the Central Bank to set commissions administratively. He said the regulator could influence operators by enhancing competition and changing market incentives.

“Just like you, I am not in favor of the Central Bank setting the rates. But the Central Bank must always stand on the side of competition and consumers.

For this position, it has instruments to exert pressure on market participants. Not by commanding, but by changing market incentives. That is what we are talking about. No one is saying to set the rates to zero through regulatory means. What I asked for at the beginning of the conversation as well is that influence needs to be exerted on payment systems,” he said.