Foreign Tourists to Pay in Russia via QR Codes Using New Service
Promselkhozbank has launched its first payment service for international visitors, Plati v Rossii (Pay in Russia). Fast customer onboarding is powered by an AI-based document recognition system developed by Smart Engines.
Foreign travelers can now pay for taxis, restaurants, hotels, retail purchases, bookings, and entertainment using QR codes from their mobile phones, both online and offline. Previously, such transactions were largely limited to cash.
The system can recognize identity documents from any country, regardless of whether they use Cyrillic, Latin, Chinese characters, or Arabic script, enabling quick and seamless verification.
CEO of Smart Engines, Doctor of Technical Sciences Vladimir Arlazarov noted that the lack of convenient payment options had long been a major barrier to inbound tourism.
The new service is expected to attract more international visitors and make travel across Russia more convenient.
