Yandex.Money Helps Russian Tourists Stay in Touch in Finland

July 14, 2014

Users can now use Yandex.Money to pay for mobile service from the Finnish carrier DNA on the site Vedia, an informational resource for Russians traveling in Finland.

According to statistics from Rostourism, Finland is the most popular foreign country for Russians to visit; in the first quarter of 2014, over 1.2 million Russians entered the country. Data from the Russian Customs Service reveal that approximately 300 thousand of the nation’s tourists traveled to Finland over the May holidays alone. Most visitors to land of Suomi hailed from St. Petersburg: in the past year the Finnish diplomatic mission to Russia issued over 1.5 million visas, 1.24 million of which went to residents of St. Petersburg.

In order to stay in touch and not overpay for phone calls while traveling in Finland, Russians can make use of the Super Prepaid SIM card offered by the Finnish mobile carrier DNA. Consumers can purchase the SIM cards in Finland and replenish their balance without crossing borders on the site Vedia. Payment methods include the popular Yandex.Money e-wallet or a bank card linked to a Yandex.Money e-wallet. The commission free payment option is convenient for those who travel to Finland regularly and want to hold on to the same SIM card rather than buy a new one every time.

Before Russian tourists could only add money to their Finnish phone number at payment kiosks in Finland, with pre-paid cards bought in the country, or through an online Finnish-language service.

DNA’s Super Prepaid SIM card can be purchased for 7.90 euros, where 7 euros go straight to your balance. Calls to Finnish landline and mobile phones cost 0.066 euros a minute. SMSs also cost 0.066 euros per message. Calls to Russia cost extra: 0.445 and 0.657 euros per minute to landlines and mobiles, respectively.

“Mobile service is one of the most popular things to pay for with Yandex.Money,” said Anna Kuzmina, deputy chief commercial officer at Yandex.Money. “Up until now users have been able to pay for mobile service on our site, with our mobile apps, on our ‘Local Payments’ service, and on the sites of Russian mobile carriers. We’re not stopping there. Our mission is to provide Russians with convenient payment options even across borders, which is why we’re building partnerships with more international carriers.”

The online service Vedia was launched in 2014 as part of the project FITSRUS (“The Helsinki-St. Petersburg Smart Transport Corridor”). The FITSRUS project was created with the support of the Finnish Ministry of Transport and Communication, as well as the Russian Ministry of Transport and the Federal Road Agency (Rosavtodor). Russians traveling to Finland can find useful material on Vedia’s site, including information about popular services, weather, travel routes, traffic conditions, public transportation, and more.

“Both Finland and Russia have a stake in the development of tourist infrastructure,” said Director of Vediafi Lauri Lankinen. “The main goal of the Finnish service Vedia is to provide up-to-date information and quality services so as to maximize convenience for Russians planning travel to Finland. Currently, users can pay for mobile service from our site. In the future, they will also be able to plan the best routes and interesting places they’d like to visit.”