“Virtual Assets Cannot be Means of Payments,“ Says Ukraine Central Bank While Backing Legalization

Ukraine’s central bank said that digital assets can be legalized and regulated, but they can’t be used as legal tender. While National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) is opening the door to a compliant virtual asset market, it is opposed to recognizing any cryptocurrency as legal tender.

NBU Chairman Andriy Pyshny said on 7 August 2025, “When forming the legislative framework for the implementation of virtual assets, in view of European integration, we must move in a clear direction, which is determined by the European MICA directive and the relevant EU Regulations.”

“At the same time, this directive entered into force only in January 2025 and it provides a fairly wide scope for discretion and national regulation,” he added.

NBU emphasized that “red lines” around monetary sovereignty, payment functions and circumvention of capital controls during wartime.

“It is important for us that our “red lines” are clearly observed,” Pyshny said. “Virtual assets cannot be a means of payment, cannot in any way undermine the effectiveness of our monetary instruments.”

“There should be no transfer of monetary powers and no undermining of the capabilities of the National Bank due to the legalization of virtual assets,” he added.

Cryptocurrency will not become a means of payment in Ukraine — this is the National Bank's "red line", said the main central banker.
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Dear National Bank of Ukraine, here you go .

Ukraine has a huge OTC market. No one can shut it down.

— TheFuzzStone (@thefuzzstone) August 7, 2025

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“Legalization of virtual assets should also not undermine our effectiveness in ensuring financial monitoring”

According to Pyshny, the legislation in the area of crypto should be implement the norms of the International Financial Task Force (FATF) standards and relevant European regulations. He cleared, “it should not fuel the shadow sector.”

Furthermore, he suggested that the ideal solution would be if legalization of virtual assets would allow the market to be de-shadowed.

“And this means that perhaps we need to have a broader discussion – what exactly will encourage bringing out of the shadows those virtual assets that already exist and are owned today,” he added.

Kyiv is also actively preserving the primacy of the hryvnia and testing a central bank digital currency (CBDC), the e-hryvnia.

Explore: Ukraine Proposes Amendments To Law To Include Digital Assets In National Strategic Reserve

Ukraine Proposes Amendments To Law To Include Digital Assets In National Strategic Reserve

On 10 June 2025, Ukraine introduced a draft law amending the law regarding the inclusion of virtual assets in the gold and foreign exchange reserves. The proposed amendments will allow digital assets like Bitcoin to be included in the country’s reserves. Notably, the country is moving rather quickly to establish its crypto reseve.

This comes days after Yaroslav Zhelezniak, a Ukrainian lawmaker who helps oversee the country’s finance and tax policy, announced the intention of a crypto reserve.

“We, as members of parliament, believe this step will help integrate Ukraine into global financial innovation,” said Zhelezniak. “Proper management of crypto reserves could strengthen macroeconomic stability and unlock new opportunities for digital economic growth.”

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Key Takeaways

Ukraine has been one of the more crypto-forward countries, with high grassroots adoption driven by remittances, donations, and digital-native communities.

The National Bank of Ukraine supports legalizing crypto within a robust regulatory framework. But NBU opposes recognizing any cryptocurrency as legal tender.