Virtual assets will not be legal currency in Ukraine, despite the adoption of the law on virtual assets, the press service of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has told Interfax-Ukraine.
“Virtual assets will not be a means of payment in Ukraine. The legal currency in Ukraine is the hryvnia,” the report says.
At the same time, the press service noted that the adoption of the law provided virtual assets with a certain legal status, and market participants – the opportunity to protect their interests and work in the legal field.
“The next important step is the development and implementation of regulatory legal acts, which in accordance with the law regulate the details of the functioning of the virtual asset market, which will ensure the protection of participants from the risks of fraud and loss of investment. The National Bank is ready to work on this together with other regulators of this market,” the NBU said.
It is indicated that technological innovations related to virtual assets should open up many promising opportunities, in particular, to improve access to financial services, increase competition in the payment services market, and promote investment attraction.
According to the report, the norms of this law are consistent with the need to achieve the goals of the National Bank, in particular, to ensure price and financial stability in Ukraine.
Governor of the NBU Kyrylo Shevchenko wrote on Facebook the regulator is studying the possibility of issuing its own digital money – e-hryvnia, and one of the potential directions is to use it in the sphere related to the circulation of virtual assets (for example, for exchange, issuance and other operations with virtual assets).
“This can create a new infrastructure that would act as an effective gateway between the real economy and the virtual asset market. Accordingly, the e-hryvnia can become one of the key elements of the qualitative development of infrastructure for virtual assets in Ukraine,” he added.
As reported, the Verkhovna Rada at second reading adopted bill No. 3637 on virtual assets. It was supported by 276 MPs.
