The National Bank of Ukraine tightened the requirements for money changers and forbade them to display their exchange rate outside the cash registers, "attracting additional excessive attention to them with any digital values or symbols."
The NBU announced this on the evening of July 29.
Also, in order to control how money changers follow the order of currency exchange, there must be video surveillance cameras on their premises. In addition, information about the cash register (CRA) used by exchangers will be transmitted to the National Bank — this will make it possible to strengthen tax discipline because exchangers practically do not pay income tax. The obligation to submit information to the Register of premises in which currency transactions are carried out has also been restored for exchangers.
Such a decision was made in order to reduce speculation on the course and create a truly competitive environment. These changes do not apply to banks, as today, practically no abuses in the field of currency exchange have been recorded by them. If it is recorded, similar restrictions will be introduced.
The NBU explained that money changers artificially increase the exchange rate on the foreign exchange market, thereby actually supporting the existence of "ATM tourism". At the same time, demand and supply in the non-cash segment of the foreign exchange market stabilized. Thus, the National Bank believes that the exchange rates set by non-bank exchangers in recent days are based on a speculative principle.
- On July 21, the National Bank changed the official exchange rate of the dollar in Ukraine for the first time since the beginning of the full-scale war. It grew by 25% and now stands at 36.5 hryvnias per dollar. It was explained as follows: "This step will allow to increase the competitiveness of Ukrainian manufacturers, bring exchange rates closer to different groups of businesses and the population, and support the stability of the economy in the conditions of war." Accordingly, the increase in the exchange rate of the hryvnia against the dollar will also affect the increase in prices in Ukraine — by 2-3%.