Russian mobile giants threaten to block major bank calls over labeling dispute
Russia’s four largest mobile operators said they will start blocking calls from the country’s biggest banks on October 15 unless the banks sign labeling agreements.
The Ministry of Digital Development sent a letter to central bank head Elvira Nabiullina urging action on a labeling requirement for mass calls. The request followed a joint appeal from Russia’s “Big Four” mobile operators—Beeline, MegaFon, MTS and T2—stating that, from October 15, they will block calls from the nation’s largest banks because the banks have not signed the required labeling contracts. The operators note that over 90% of banking-sector companies and nearly all other firms have already agreed, while the major banks either decline to sign or fail to comply.
Andrei Yemelin of the National Financial Market Council said the banks contend the law obliges telecoms to supply the label, not the callers. Since January 2026, operators have already stopped showing the “bank” label on calls from Sberbank, VTB and Alfa-Bank. Labeling costs about 30 kopecks per call, amounting to up to 1 billion rubles annually for a large bank and up to 20 billion rubles across the market.
Why it matters
Blocking bank calls could disrupt financial communications and affect millions of Russian consumers.
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