When a National Bank official says "there should be no risks," it's worth translating that into practical language: how much money can you actually withdraw or transfer now and why do this at all right now.
The answer is simple and non-political — the old limits have simply become outdated. National Bank Governor Andrii Pyshny and his deputy Yurii Heletii explained to LIGA.net: the restrictions were introduced in 2022 when the exchange rate was 29.3 UAH/USD. Now the dollar costs 44.7 UAH — meaning the same amount in hryvnia buys almost twice less foreign currency than three years ago. Add inflation, particularly in countries where migrants have moved to — and it becomes clear why a 50,000 UAH limit, which once seemed like a decent sum, has turned into pocket change for a family paying rent in Europe.
What specifically is changing
- Cashless currency purchase: from 50,000 to 200,000 UAH per month — four times more.
- Cash currency withdrawal: from 100,000 to 200,000 UAH per day.
- Payment for goods, services and housing rental abroad from UAH accounts: limit up to 200,000 UAH per month.
- For foreign currency accounts — separate limit for transfers for the same needs.
Practically, this means: if you're renting an apartment in Warsaw or Berlin and so far have had to split payments into several tranches or find alternative transfer methods, now you can settle this with a single card payment.
Why this benefits the National Bank, not just people
According to Heletii, the calculations are based on real statistics — how much money is withdrawn from cards and spent in Ukraine and abroad. "These indicators are quite stable. That is, there should be no risks," he says.
"This is also a certain fairness on our part. When we introduced restrictions in 2022, the rate was 29.3 UAH/USD, and now we have 44.7 UAH/USD," Heletii explained.
There's also a pragmatic calculation. Pyshny noted that liberalization should direct demand for foreign currency into legal channels — that is, steer people away from the "gray" exchange market, where the rate is always worse and there are no guarantees. If a card allows you to do the same officially and cheaper, why go to a money changer on the corner.
Where the risk lies
The regulator acknowledges the impact on international reserves, though it calls it "moderate." The logic is clear: more people will be able to legally withdraw currency abroad, and that's additional demand for dollars and euros, which was previously held back by limits. The National Bank is betting that the redistribution of demand between cash and cashless segments will offset this effect.
The question for the coming months is simple: will the National Bank's forecast of "significant positive effects with moderate impact on reserves" come true, or will the expanded limits accelerate currency outflow faster than the regulator expects — and then in the fall they'll have to either adjust the exchange rate or reinstate some restrictions.
