Ukraine is beginning to consider moving away from the dollar and pegging the hryvnia more closely to the euro — all because of growing ties with Europe.
This was stated by the head of the National Bank (NBU) Andriy Pyshnyi, in a comment to Reuters.
Among the reasons for this decision, Pyshnyi cited potential accession to the European Union, the strengthening of the EUʼs role in ensuring Ukraineʼs defense capabilities, increased volatility in global markets, and the likelihood of fragmentation of world trade.
"This work is complex and requires high-quality, versatile training," the head of the NBU added.
Transactions with the US dollar continue to dominate all segments of the foreign exchange market, Pyshnyi noted, but the share of transactions in the euro is growing in most segments, although "moderately so far".
The head of the National Bank also stated that the revival of investment and consumer activity due to closer ties with Europe and economic normalization will contribute to the acceleration of economic growth over the next two years to 3.7-3.9%. At the same time, he noted that everything will depend on the security situation in Ukraine.
"A quick end to the war would certainly be a positive scenario with good economic consequences if it included security guarantees for Ukraine. At the same time, it is important to recognize that the economic benefits of ending the war will likely take time to be fully realized," he added.
- Ukraine introduced the hryvnia in 1996 and for decades used the US dollar as its reference currency.
- The NBU first talked about re-pegging the hryvnia exchange rate from the dollar to the euro in March 2024.
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