VTB Bank has sharply reduced the amount that customers of other banks can withdraw through its ATM network in Russia-annexed Crimea, concentrating the effects of the peninsula’s infrastructure emergency inside its dominant cash-distribution system.
The restrictions began July 8 and are scheduled to remain in place through August 1. Petersburg Social Commercial Bank, or PSKB, told customers that withdrawals from their cards through VTB machines are now limited to 15,000 rubles per day and 50,000 rubles per month.
The previous limits were 150,000 rubles per day and 300,000 rubles per month, according to RBC. That represents a 90% reduction in the daily ceiling and an approximately 83% reduction in the monthly allowance.
Sponsored · Cambria Gold Mines
The confirmed policy concerns cash withdrawals from VTB ATMs in Crimea and Sevastopol using cards issued by other banks.
VTB says withdrawal conditions for its own customers remain unchanged. No official notice reviewed for this article announces a general freeze on deposits, domestic transfers, card payments, or online account access.
The state-controlled lender said it was reserving capacity for its own customers as emergency conditions increased pressure on its network.
“According to our statistics, the approved limits cover the absolute majority of daily transactions by users of our ATMs in the region. For VTB customers, all conditions remain unchanged,” a VTB representative told RBC.
Sponsored · Silver47 Exploration Inc.
The bank added that it would monitor conditions and could revise the limits if necessary.
VTB operates approximately 1,400 ATMs across Crimea. Some machines require functioning grid connections, while ATMs located in selected branches have been connected to generators.
VTB became the peninsula’s main banking operator after absorbing Russian National Commercial Bank, previously Crimea’s largest lender. Its network is also used by customers of smaller institutions that do not maintain enough machines of their own. PSKB, for example, has no proprietary ATM network in Crimea and relies on partner machines operated by VTB and Uralsib.
Crimea and Sevastopol have been under a regional state of emergency since June 26 following disruptions to electricity and fuel supplies.
Rolling outages have reportedly affected 18 of Crimea’s 29 cities, including Simferopol, Yevpatoria, Sudak, and Feodosia. The interruptions reduce the number of machines and branches able to operate consistently, increasing demand at remaining locations.
Fuel shortages have also disrupted transportation and commercial operations. Regional authorities temporarily restricted gasoline sales, while some businesses have reported supply-chain and operating problems connected to fuel scarcity and electricity cuts.
Other major banks operating in Crimea told RBC that they had not introduced comparable cash restrictions. Sberbank, Promsvyazbank, Bank Rossiya, and the Black Sea Bank for Development and Reconstruction said their branches and machines held enough cash to meet customer demand.
