Market participants discuss the consequences of mandatory call labeling

From September 1, 2025 in Russia there is a law on mandatory marking of calls initiated by legal entities. Thanks to this, the subscriber can see the name of the organization and the sphere in which it works. According to operators, after the launch of the mechanism, the number of spam calls decreased by 30%. At the same time, it is still unclear who exactly and under what conditions should finance the implementation of these requirements.

Representatives of the “big four” consider marking a service that requires infrastructure costs. On average, they charge 30 cents for each call attempt, regardless of whether the conversation actually took place. Banks challenge this approach: in their interpretation, the obligation to convey information about the caller to the subscriber lies with the operator, and the law does not require the initiator of the call to conclude a separate paid contract. The Association of Banks of Russia advocated the transfer of information through the Unified Verification Platform “Anti-Throde” instead of concluding many separate agreements. The association also sought to ensure that personalized calls, such as notifications of suspicious transactions, were not classified as mass and were not blocked.

In the autumn, the conflict became more acute: operators warned banks that from October 15, 2026, calls without marking will cease to be delivered to subscribers. However, after the meeting, the application of restrictions to credit and financial institutions was postponed to November 15. Beeline has already reached agreements with major banks. On November 11, MegaFon and MTS announced a “package solution for the financial sector”, in which the costs of banks cease to depend directly on the number of calls made.

An additional factor in the dispute was the financial context. By the end of 2025, MegaFon’s operating profit increased by 11.6% and reached 222.3 billion rubles, while the company’s capital investments decreased by almost 30%. Representatives of the business community demand a clear and reasonable calculation of the cost of marking.

The issue concerns not only banks: all legal entities will have to pay for marking - from delivery companies to marketplaces. According to experts, an agreement reached with one operator can set a benchmark for the entire industry. The need for marking as a measure to protect citizens is recognized by all participants in the discussion. The main thing is to create a fair, transparent and predictable scheme for its implementation.