OREANDA-NEWS. Belarus' business unions (the Republican Confederation of Entrepreneurship and the Belarusian Businessmen Union) have sent a letter to Vice Premier Petr Prokopovich, the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Economy of Belarus with reference to Resolution #599 of Sep 29, 2014 issued by the National Bank of Belarus (NBB).

The resolution is complete with a set of recommendations for banks regarding their merchant acquiring and cash collection tariffs. Having analyzed the likely consequences of the NBB recommendations, experts of the business unions in question say the NBB's tariff guidelines will cause companies on Belarus' consumer market to increase their annual operating expenditures by Br1 trillion (USD 93.634m). The extra operating costs are likely to upset the profit margin of small and medium-sized companies working in the sector of retail trade and public food catering.

The NBB resolution, which seeks to promote cashless transactions, suggests that banks should raise their cash collection tariffs, is likely to reduce the average profit margin by 17.5% (by 25% on the sector of food trade).

The letter says that if entities see their a decline in their profits as a result of higher cash collection tariffs, they may choose either to close their business or start using half-legal practices until the market situation improves.

The business unions suggest the government and ministries concerned should hold a meeting with all parties concerned to discuss the situation and reach a compromise.