In 2025, there is a significant increase in the use of payment stickers. They have become popular among clients of major banks. In the first eight months of this year, the number of transactions increased by 1.5–3.5 times compared to last year. Many users who were accustomed to contactless payments with iPhones lost this capability in 2022.
From January to August 2025, VTB Bank clients made 292 million transactions using stickers, totaling 213 billion rubles. T-Bank processed over 390 million transactions during the same period, which is equivalent to the number of transactions for the entire year of 2024. At Alfa-Bank, the volume of sticker transactions exceeded 100 billion rubles, an increase of 51% compared to last year.
A payment sticker is a mini-version of a bank card that allows contactless payments via an NFC chip. Stickers remain a niche product, used by approximately 3–7 million clients, mainly iPhone owners.
According to independent expert Maxim Mitusov, "for those who have mastered payment by QR code, using a payment sticker maintains a familiar user experience." According to Artur Eyubov from Alfa-Bank, iOS device owners make 62% of transactions using stickers.
Modern stickers have become more reliable, and in some cases, their use is even safer than regular cards. Mitusov emphasizes that stickers are more beneficial for banks, as they secure customer choice and ensure a larger share of transactions.
Earlier, www1.ru wrote about how Sberbank and T-Bank allowed iPhone users to make contactless payments via "Vzhuh." The new service can work even without an internet connection.