Leading the mobile payment market in Russia, T-bank was originally founded as Tinkoff Bank in 2006. After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022, Tinkoff Bank faced Western sanctions due to its status as a Russian financial institution. Three years later, T-bank, following its rebranding, did not suffer severe setbacks or collapse but instead saw rapid development in all its businesses. By 2023, T-bank had over 30 million customers (the latest data shows that this number has exceeded 50 million), making it the second-largest bank in Russia.

T-Bank's headquarters building in Moscow, author's photo

Currently, the promotion of mobile payments in Europe and America is still limited, with people still accustomed to using cash and cards. However, in Russia, which has been under blockade and sanctions, mobile payments have flourished. During our visit to Moscow, we discussed the rapid development of mobile payments in Russia with Alexander Leonov, Head of Strategic Communications at T-Bank.

[Interview/ Observer Network, Winter晓]

Observer Network: The impression given by T-Bank is more like a technology company than a traditional bank. In China, such companies are being differentiated. This is related to financial security, while developing technology requires more freedom. There may be conflicts between these two interests. How does your company balance these two fields—finance and technology?

Alexander Leonov: That’s a good question. The situation in Russia is somewhat different. In fact, over the past 15 years, banks have historically developed as IT companies. For example, we don’t even call ourselves a bank; we refer to ourselves as an "IT company with a banking license." About 20 years ago, T Bank (Tinkoff) appeared in Russia and began developing online banking; there was no experience to refer to at that time worldwide.

Strategic communication leader of T-Bank, Alexander Leonov, author's photo

We developed the Russian financial market from a technical perspective and from the angle of online banking, and quite quickly created a term—"fintech" (финтех). Before Tinkoff appeared in Russia and started developing, the word "fintech" did not exist globally.

Tinkoff entered the still very traditional Russian market (at that time dominated by traditional banks) and established the standard for online banking. Afterward, all Russian banks actively participated, developing their own technologies, applications, and online banking systems.

Thus, there was a competition of ambition, a technology race, and an investment race in the development of online banking. Ultimately, today we consider Russia one of the global leaders in fintech. We were the pioneers of this process then, the "disruptors" who initiated and drove this transformation.

This is how it evolved. We don’t have the issue of IT companies and financial companies being separated—here, everything is highly integrated. Such large banks, along with other participants, have long become IT companies. Moreover, there is now a trend: IT companies, especially large e-commerce platforms, are also creating their own banks. Actually, in Russia, we’ve considered things carefully on a regulatory level, so we don’t face this problem.

The interior of T-Bank’s headquarters features a full floor of gyms, hospitals, and recreational facilities, making it look more like a tech company like Google than a traditional financial institution, author's photo

Observer Network: In many European and American countries, the adoption rate of mobile payments is still relatively limited, with people still accustomed to using cash and cards. What is the current state of mobile payments in Russia?

Alexander Leonov: Actually, we need to do a brief historical review of how the Russian financial market developed. Globally, there have always been well-established traditional banking institutions, particularly in Europe and the United States. These are traditional banks that have been developing for decades.

On the other hand, the Russian financial market only began forming after 2000. At that time, the first banks emerged. Then we entered the market and changed the entire landscape from the perspective of fintech. We skipped the stage of traditional bank formation and directly moved into the stages of online banking and fintech development. Therefore, about 15 years ago, the Russian cashless payment market began to develop very actively.

So, this consumption model—using cards, then mobile applications, and finally various payment services (including local Russian payment services)—was formed within the last 10 to 15 years. Russians have long been accustomed to this. They have been actively using these services. To them, it feels as natural as breathing. When they travel to other countries, such as certain European countries (like Austria), and find they cannot use cards or mobile payments, they feel quite astonished.

This makes them realize again that, from a payment technology standpoint, Russia is a world leader. To put it bluntly, we completed the transition from cash payments to cashless payments 15 years ago.

Observer Network: Currently, T-Bank’s payment software can only bind cards issued by itself. Will you collaborate with more Russian banks in the future to form a payment organization similar to Visa and Mastercard?

Alexander Leonov: Actually, we have already become a fully mature technology platform. We have long said that we are not a bank but a vast ecosystem: a bank, mobile communications, insurance, and investment services.

We were the first in Russia to launch mobile investment services. Previously, investing was a complex matter, a complicated process, but we "Uberized" it (simplified it to something as easy as hailing a car), and now users can invest by clicking a few times in the app. We have many functions, a very powerful application. Essentially, our app is our office; people don’t need to go to physical branches, as everything can be done within the app. We are now the second-largest bank in terms of customer numbers in the country, with over 50 million Russians using our services.

We are actively developing partnerships with other major banks (such as Sberbank of Russia) and conducting system integration. Now, personal accounts and balances from other banks (including Sberbank and others to follow) are visible in our app. We also have our own payment system—T-Pay—similar to Google Pay or Apple Pay. We are moving in that direction.

T-Bank’s offline terminals are already equipped with Chinese language services, author's photo

Observer Network: We’ve observed that to facilitate Chinese users, the interface of self-service machines has added Chinese options, and a Chinese service account was launched on WeChat earlier. How is the promotion of T-Bank in the Chinese market going?

Alexander Leonov: I would like to quote Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin: “The Russians and Chinese are forever brothers.” So, we are indeed actively promoting cooperation in the direction of China and launching relevant products for Chinese customers. For instance, last year, the number of Chinese citizens opening accounts and cards with us doubled at least. People opening accounts here include Chinese companies, Chinese residents in Russia, and Sino-Russian joint ventures. Our annual growth rate in this area is at least double, and we are actively developing this direction.

Our DNA and the foundation of our business are to provide the best customer service where customers find it most convenient while strictly safeguarding bank secrecy. Therefore, we are currently exploring new possibilities, including how to communicate with our Chinese customers. The current channels are our App and website. But I believe that in the near future, we might develop new channels. We are already actively collaborating with Chinese companies and partners. T-Bank, formerly known as Tinkoff, is actually a very young bank, with only 19 years of history.

In a relatively short period, we have traveled a long way. We changed the rules of the game in Russia—whether in the financial market, technology, or fintech sectors. We have focused long-term on the Russian market and have become the second-largest bank in terms of customer numbers nationwide. Now, we are approaching a phase—expanding internationally and deepening cooperation with overseas partners.

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