Mikhail Chobanian urges the NBU to open bank accounts for Bitcoin exchanges

Mikhail Chobanian, president of the Blockchain Association of Ukraine (BAU), has asked the National Bank to allow cryptocurrency exchanges to operate with cash and non-cash hryvnia during martial law, and to open a dedicated bank account for them. He said this in his Telegram channel.

Currently, holders of hryvnia cards, in particular PrivatBank clients, report difficulties topping up accounts on foreign crypto exchanges in hryvnia. In the bank’s tech support they refer to the NBU Resolution of February 24, which forbids them, at customers’ instruction, from making cross-border transfers of monetary assets from Ukraine.

“There is no provision for transferring currency funds for use on cryptocurrency exchanges, or for depositing to bank accounts funds obtained on crypto exchanges,” noted PrivBank.

Since the start of the war, the NBU restricted operations on bank accounts and suspended the foreign exchange market. According to Mikhail Chobanian, cashless hryvnia and cryptocurrencies are, in these conditions, the “only bridge connecting Ukraine’s economy with the outside world.”

“It is precisely thanks to this bridge that volunteers buy equipment, humanitarian aid and other assistance for Ukraine. If that bridge is also cut, all non-state supplies for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, territorial defense and special units will stop,” he warned.

Chobanian proposes:

• not to limit crypto P2P transfers;
• allow banks to perform transfers for individuals related to cryptocurrencies, subject to financial monitoring;
• open bank accounts for Ukrainian crypto exchanges and entrust oversight of them to the НКЦБФР.

The last point was previously outlined by BAU’s president in a letter to the NBU. It was supported by the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Tax Service, the Ministry of Finance and a number of companies, but the regulator has not yet issued an official response.

Chobanian urged the community to work together to influence the NBU’s decision.

“Crypto is the only thing that is saving Ukraine right now,” he stressed.

ForkLog requested comments from the National Bank.

As a reminder, on March 16 PrivatBank temporarily banned its clients from depositing hryvnias to cryptocurrency exchanges. At the time, Chobanian stated that the restriction did not affect the market for Ukrainian trading platforms.

Representatives of Binance, in comments to ForkLog, said that PrivatBank did not notify them of blocking hryvnia input to the exchange, but users “are experiencing problems with such transactions.”

Read ForkLog’s bitcoin news on our Telegram — cryptocurrency news, prices and analysis.