VLADIVOSTOK (Reuters) - A new joint venture between Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba and Russian firms will use Russia's payment system, Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said on Tuesday.
Russia started to develop its own payment system, known as Mir, after western sanctions were first imposed in 2014 over Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis.
Mir is used in Russia in addition to international payment systems, including Visa and MasterCard.
Dmitriev said Alibaba's intention to invest in Russia was important for Russia's economic growth.
(Reporting by Polina Nikolskaya; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Jason Neely)