Russia

Russia has more internet users than Germany International and domestic investors are grabbing big

opportunities in Russia as internet penetration reaches more

than a third of the country. For the first time Russia has

overtaken Germany as the market with the largest online

audience in Europe. Russia presents a unique challenge to an

international company. In addition to adapting to a different

language and culture, there are profound differences in

business and payment processes.

Fast Facts

Broadband growing by about 3% a month

Central Region (including Moscow) represents 31% of Russia’s

online population

There will be 185.9 million mobile phone subscriptions

in the country by the end of 2011

Online spending in Russia accounts for less than 1% of the total

retail market

E-commerce Data

Internet usage top five countries Most demanded goods by Russian online

Most demanded goods online by sales Payment product by volume

Internet usage 2010/2011

Internet penetration 43%

Internet population 60,200,000

Broadband penetration 60% – 80% by 2015

Value E-commerce market $21,7 billion

General statistics 2011

Population 140,000,000

Currency Ruble (RUB)

Major language Russian

Capital Moscow

GDP per capita $15,900

0

20

40

60

Internet usage September 2011(million)

Russia

Germany

France

UK

Italy

Quick Overview

Russian online audience relatively young

Russia’s online audience is relatively young, many still

use the Internet primarily for communication, while

entertainment and business, the main growth drivers in

Western countries, come in second. Heavy social media users

Russian Internet users are among the heaviest users of

social networks, boasting one of the highest usage rates

and spending the longest time there. The main Russian

websites are the social network Vkontakte, search engine

Yandex, and the webmail portal Mail.ru.

E-commerce dominated by domestic companies

The Russian e‐commerce market is dominated by domestic

companies. In terms of overall volume, the greatest share

of e‐commerce sales are in the travel and telecom

sectors, where all of the players have offline presences

which provide assurance to consumers that they will have

recourse to a “real” company in the event of a problem.

Positive e-commerce perspectives

Currently almost 70% of Internet users make at least 1 online

purchase each 6 months; 25% regularly spend $315 - $940

on online purchases, and around 30% spend $16 - $95 while

doing online shopping. Future trends suggest nothing but

the growth of their number.

Explosive mobile internet increase

Because household broadband penetration remains flat,

they attributed the increase to mobile internet usage.

The number of mobile internet users in Russia will grow to

43 million people by the end of 2011 from 39 million

registered at the end of 2010.

Online Payment segment dominated by eWallets

Russians still believe in cash. Many of them do not trust

banks, while credit cards are rare. The online payment

segment is dominated by eWallets. They consist of large

networks of cash collecting POS terminals, agents, and

franchises to execute payments and store money for later

use. Typically, eWallets can be charged via a variety of

methods such as cash, bank cards, vouchers, virtual

currencies, and more.

Regulation makes cross-border money transfers difficult

Russian legislation on online payments is completely

different from the Western model. Payment service

providers are confronted with regular changes in legislation

and what may be common practice today may be

forbidden tomorrow, making it a challenge to do business in

Russia.

The most successful Russian internet shops

1. Unkonos.ru Foodstuff

2. Ozon.ru Hypermarket

3. Kipivip.ru Clothes, Footwear

4. Holodilnik.ru Household Appl. & Electr.

5. Pleer.ru Household Appl. & Electr.

6. Komus.ru Office Supplies

7. Mvideo.ru Household Apll. & Electr.

8. Svyaznoy.ru Mobile Phones

9. Quelle.ru Clothes, Footwear

10. Otto.ru Clothes, Footwear

31%

30%

20%

13% 6%

Internet Audience

15-24

25-34

35-44

45-55

55+

0

20

40

60

2009 2010 2011 2012

The number of mobile internet subscribers

(million)

Payment Product Spotlight

Global Collect’s Portfolio in Russia

International Cards GlobalCollect supports American Express, MasterCard, Visa & Amex

Bank transfer GlobalCollect supports Local bank transfers

Check GlobalCollect supports check processing

e-Wallets GlobalCollect supports WebMoney & Yandex

Mobile The support for mobile is on the future’s list of GlobalCollect

Prepaid GlobalCollect supports Ukash

Russian payment products spotlight

Yandex Money is one of the most popular payment service in Russia that

allows users to buy virtual and real goods and services online.

Transactions can be initiated either in the browser or in “Internet.Purse”

application.

WebMoney is a multifunctional payment tool that provides secure and

immediate transactions online. Originally targeted mainly at Russian

customers, which now has over 16 million registered accounts all over the

world. All transactions in the system are immediate and nonrefundable.

PAYMENT TERMINALS are widespread throughout Russia (270,000+ in

total). These ATM-like terminals are used to pay cash for a variety of

goods (e.g. subscription bills, top up eWallets or prepaid phones).

The top 3 players are QIWI, e-Port and Cyberplat.

A tailored solution Outsourcing currency conversion services,

combined with a remittance currency set-up

tailored to your needs, allows merchants to

focus on their core business activities and

realize organizational savings.

About GlobalCollect GlobalCollect is the world's premier Payment

Service Provider of local e-payment solutions

for international Customer Not-Present (CNP)

channels. A pioneer of global payment

processing with more than 15 years of

experience as a full service provider, we have

a proven track record in helping our merchants

realize their global ambitions and expand their

eCommerce activities across the world.

Sources: Suntsofa Daria – Realities and perspectives of e-commerce in Russia, March 2011

Innopay Study - Online payments 2011

ComScore - Overview of BRIC Internet markets, October 2011

Interstice - Russian E‐Commerce Market - Behind the Numbers, March 2011

www.emarketer.com - High Mobile Usage in Russia, but Lagging Technology, November 2011 V3.1