Card payments: Visa tests first live international transaction in Syria, after 15 years of isolation
Visa, a global leader in digital payments, announced they have tested the first live international transaction in Syria, marking an important milestone in supporting the country’s financial services sector. “Working with Fransabank Lebanon as the acquiring financial institution and Paymera, the test is the start of a historic step toward expanding digital payment capabilities in the market and providing international visitors with a familiar, secure, and convenient way to make payments.” – according to the press release.
H.E. Mohammed Safwat Raslan, Governor of the Central Bank of Syria, said: “The Central Bank of Syria views the modernization of the national payments ecosystem and its greater integration with international payment systems as an important part of the broader modernization of Syria’s financial infrastructure. Today’s test paves the way for international card acceptance in Syria and represents a practical milestone in expanding payment options and facilitating transactions for international visitors. We look forward to further expanding secure and efficient payment solutions that facilitate commerce and tourism and improve the payment experience in Syria.”
Leila Serhan, Senior Vice President and Group Country Manager for the North Africa, Levant and Pakistan (NALP) Region at Visa, said: “Over the past several months, we have taken important steps to support the reintroduction of digital payments in Syria and greater participation in the global digital economy within applicable legal, regulatory and compliance requirements, working closely with partners and stakeholders to help lay the foundations for a more connected and digitally enabled economy. We are excited to have successfully tested live transactions today as we plan to enable international visitors to use their Visa cards while in Syria. This is an important milestone in the development of Syria’s payments ecosystem.“
Michel Kattouah, CEO, Paymera, said: “The return of international card acceptance is an important milestone for Syria’s digital transformation journey. As one of the enablers of this milestone, Paymera is pleased to collaborate with Visa, Fransabank Lebanon and other ecosystem partners to help connect visitors and businesses to secure digital payment capabilities.“
The successful international transactions tested today builds on Visa’s ongoing efforts in Syria including the collaboration with the Central Bank of Syria and the broader financial ecosystem, following the strategic roadmap announced in December 2025 to support Syria’s integration into the global digital economy, hosting Visa’s first industry gathering of banks, ecosystem partners and policymakers in Damascus February 2026 and signing an agreement with Syria’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in San Francisco in February 2026.
___
Around 2011: International Visa and Mastercard card payments effectively stopped functioning in Syria as the Syrian civil war began and Western sanctions were imposed on the Assad government. The result was that Syrian banks became disconnected from international card networks. Why: U.S. and European sanctions, restrictions on Syrian banks, and the resulting compliance/legal risk made international banks and payment networks unwilling or unable to process Syrian transactions. Syria was also on the U.S. State Sponsors of Terrorism list, which remained an additional major obstacle.
2025: The U.S. removed broad Syria sanctions, effective July 1, 2025, allowing U.S. financial institutions to provide services to Syrian financial institutions under certain conditions.
2026: The infrastructure began coming back. Syria’s central bank authorized local banks/payment companies to work with Visa and Mastercard in May 2026, after roughly 15 years of isolation.
