March 2020
Russian banks have launched special products and promotions, which play with words “coronavirus”. But not all of them. “Raiffeisen: “We don’t see the need to create products focused on the news background”. Bank Saint Petersburg: “Our bank is not flirting with sensitive topics…”. Urals Bank for Reconstruction and Development: “We are directing our efforts at improving remote channels” (“Vedomosti”, March 24).
Below are the offers from Moscow Credit Bank, Tinkoff, Sberbank, Citibank and Vostochny. Just some examples for the record.
Moscow Credit Bank offers to register in a special loyalty program “On Quarantine” and get an increased point (to be exchanged for money or privileges) when paying by card for fast food, video games and online cinema. From April to June, all other loyalty programs have more points for shopping at retail outlets in the categories of “cafes and restaurants”, “sports”, “public transport” and “beauty”.
Tinkoff launched a “Stay at Home” campaign until April 30: when applying for a card (which will then be brought to the house by a masked courier with an antiseptic) before the beginning of May, the bank promises 5% bonuses for delivered food, goods for animals and household items, 10% for telemedicine and video training, 15% for buying games, movies and music through partner services. At least till the end of April the bank is going to launch the campaign “under quarantine” with bonuses from partners: 45 days of free subscription from ivi.ru, discount of 2000 rubles to pay for courses at on-line learning platform Skyeng.
Sberbank has launched a series of promotions from the services and companies of its partners that are part of their “ecosystem”, network of partner companies. Discounts for new customers from delivery companies and taxis, from online cinema. Sberbank’s loyalty programme “Thank you” has launched a section on its website entitled “For Those Staying At Home”: to exchange bonuses for discounts from partners or to pay for partners’ services.
Citibank reduces the cost of partner companies’ services when paying with the bank card: by 10% for finished food delivery, by 30% for dry cleaning with home delivery, by 20% for cashback when buying online food and delivery – within various short-term promotions, depending on the card type (easy to get confused).
Bank Vostochny ordered insurance company Arsenal to develop a special policy for coronavirus, despite the fact that most medical and credit insurance programs cover the risk of this disease (as opposed to cancer or HIV). Three “Anticoronavirus” insurance programs are sold for six months: “Standard”, “Optimum” and “Ultra” with coverage up to 300,000, 500,000 and 1 million rubles. In case of diagnosed coronavirus disease the insured is promised to pay 3000, 5000 or 6000 rubles for each day of incapacity for work, in case of death from the virus the heirs of the insured will receive 100% coverage. The bank says that the policies when purchased from an online bank are still much cheaper than in branches: 500, 800 and 1500 rubles against 3000, 4000 and 9000 rubles.
Bank Otkrytie gives an opportunity to small businesses borrowers to take advantage of deferred payments on loans from April to June. To get the grace period, entrepreneurs just have to contact their personal managers. No need to provide figures and documents for analysis.
The German government has allocated fifty billion euros to support entrepreneurs in cultural sphere: grants to freelancers and small businesses for rental expenses, loans to small businesses, including newspaper publishers.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has announced solidarity package for partner financial institutions who already have the EBRD loans – a billion euros is now available as a fund for additional financing, and next steps will follow.
The energy of chaos, which fuels itself, is once again being channelled: the devil is being harnessed, a mill is being set up on a rough river. According to the Old Testament, those who went bankrupt had to wait a year for the forgiveness of their debts or for the Savior. According to the New Testament, forgiveness (of sins, debts, guilt) is a key element, and as Tomas Sedlachek writes in The Economics of Good and Evil, “If this concept seems distant or irrelevant today, let’s just remember the recent redemption of banks and large companies in the crisis years of 2008 and 2009. Our modern society, paradoxically, cannot function without the institute of this unfair forgiveness of debt. It would be hard to imagine the financial Armageddon that would follow if governments did not pay the ransom and redeem banks and some large companies, although this goes against all principles of sound reason and of basic fairness.”
