Nordics and Estonia rolling out offline card payment back-up in case internet cut

Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Estonia are rolling out offline card payment systems to provide a back-up if internet connections are lost, including due to sabotage, Bank of Finland board member Tuomas Valimaki said according to Reuters.

The plans come after the Baltic Sea region has suffered several instances of unexplained damage to critical undersea infrastructure in recent years, and as Western intelligence services have accused Russia of committing various acts of sabotage – a charge the Kremlin rejects.

„The likelihood of major disruptions has increased because the geopolitical situation has changed worldwide. There is a war in Europe, and around that war, there is all sorts of hybrid influence and harassment, which may involve disrupting or cutting connections,” Valimaki told Reuters, referring to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

He said payments were a potential target because of their critical role in everyday life. Only 10% of people use cash as their primary payment method in Finland, central bank data show, making the country highly dependent on card payments.

„Since card payments require functioning international data links, Finland must be prepared for interruptions. Many other countries are of course in the same situation,” Valimaki said, adding Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Estonia were also planning to introduce offline card payments, and possibly other nations too.

Valimaki said the plans were still being developed, but offline payments can involve using terminals that encrypt and store transaction data until an internet connection can be restored.

”Finland needs a wider range of alternatives for making day-to-day payments. The escalation in geopolitical tensions has made this even more important. It is in all our interests, and is our duty, to ensure the resilience of payment methods in Finland,” said Välimäki, speaking at the Bank of Finland’s Payments Forum.