Russia-to-Azerbaijan Transfers via Zolotaya Korona Are Blocked as EU Sanctions Hit 94 Russian and 4 Foreign Banks

Money transfers from Russia to Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Kazakhstan via Zolotaya Korona are no longer available. For high-risk PSPs, the practical point is simple: when a payment rail loses corridor coverage or a counterparty gets sanctioned, downstream transfer options can disappear fast, even if local banks still support the scheme on paper.

1. On the Zolotaya Korona website, users in Russia can now send money online only to Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, and Uzbekistan. Transfers from Russia to Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Kazakhstan through the service have become unavailable.
2. Unibank and Yelo said that, despite supporting the Zolotaya Korona payment system, transfers from Azerbaijan to Russia are temporarily impossible because of problems in the service. VTB Azerbaijan said the bank does not process transfers via this payment system.
3. Transfers between Цифра банк and Kazakhstan’s Freedom Bank are unavailable because of sanctions imposed on the Russian lender, according to Freedom Bank’s press service. The bank said it begins winding down cooperation immediately after sanctions are imposed on a counterparty.
4. For ruble transfers to Freedom Bank, clients are being offered a SWIFT transfer through Unifondbank.
5. On 23 July, the European Union added 94 Russian banks and 4 foreign banks to its 21st sanctions package.