The QIWI payment service is preparing to leave the Uzbekistan market, the company’s website reported.

The QIWI Uzbekistan application will stop working on December 18. Before this date, users were advised to spend money in their wallet or withdraw it to their bank cards.

From November 16, the company will begin charging a commission of 75 thousand soums daily for storing money on the balance sheet, since QIWI “cannot hold its clients’ funds”. After December 18, clients can withdraw money from their wallet only upon application.

The company cited restrictions on international transfers and payments introduced by the Central Bank for payment services in September as the main reason for the closure. Almost 90% of clients used the QIWI Uzbekistan wallet specifically for international payments.

To pay for services outside of Uzbekistan, one will need to open an account in the required currency in the single QIWI application. At the same time, the company once again emphasized that transferring money from a local wallet to a foreign one is impossible.

In August, the Central Bank limited a number of operations for QIWI Uzbekistan. In addition to cross-border payments, money transfers to HUMO and Uzcard cards were suspended.