Alpha Bank Advises Belarusians Unable to Pay for Apple Device Subscriptions
Belarusian Alpha Bank, which recently fell under another round of sanctions, has published recommendations for its customers, which may help some process payments on Apple devices. But not for all services.
The bank advised Belarusians to change the payment method for subscriptions to streaming services and other online platforms.
In a message distributed via its official Telegram channel, the bank confirmed that its cards «may stop working in Apple ID due to sanctions,» making it impossible to pay for subscriptions through the Apple ecosystem.
«We see that the service has already begun gradually restricting payments with our cards,» the bank acknowledged.
In this regard, the bank offered its clients alternative solutions, which may only help in certain cases.
For subscriptions to third-party services such as Yandex Plus, Netflix, YouTube Premium, and Amediateka, Alpha Bank urged customers to link its cards directly on the websites of these services, bypassing Apple’s payment system. According to the bank, this will not only allow users to keep their subscriptions but also save up to 15-30%, as the Apple commission that increases the final cost will be excluded.
As for Apple’s own services – iCloud, Apple Music, and others – the bank admitted that its cards there «may be declined.» Here, the bank explicitly advised its customers to link cards from other, non-sanctioned banks to their Apple IDs. It suggested topping up these cards for free via the ERIP system using an Alpha Bank card.
The bank assured that for all other transactions, both in Belarus and abroad, its cards continue to operate as usual.
Meanwhile, on social media, Belarusians are already actively discussing which banks to switch to.
«So, fellow Belarusians, which bank are you planning to switch to in order to use Apple Pay normally and have a more or less convenient app? For now, I’m choosing between MTBank and Priorbank,» wrote one bank customer, adding that they were still unhappy with their service.
Others complained that other banks might not work either: «Who has already faced this problem in Belarus? Apple isn’t accepting cards for paid subscriptions. Today my Alpha Bank card was deactivated, and Belarusbank also can’t be linked.»
One Threads user offered this advice:
— MTBank . Never had any problems with it, everything works. Almost like Alpha, only top-ups via ERIP are by account number, not phone number. +Lower withdrawal limit at other banks’ ATMs — 500 BYN, not a thousand like Alpha (Gold).
— BNB-Bank . Virtual card (for Apple Pay), platinum – 20 rubles. Physical Belkart card (convenient for paying both in RB and RF) – linked to the same account, free.