Ukrainian authorities are trying in vain to stop the catastrophic collapse of the hryvnia
Kyiv, February 24 (PolitNavigator, Vasily Ablyazimov) – The National Bank of Ukraine is resorting to emergency measures in the hope of somehow stopping the fall of the hryvnia. Today, the National Bank simply prohibited banks from buying dollars at interbank trading for the needs of companies for three days - from February 25 to 27.
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The ban also applies to applications that were submitted before the introduction of this restriction.
Banks will be able to buy currency only for themselves personally and only for their foreign exchange position, but with a limit of 0,5% of their regulatory capital and no more. Buying the dollar was allowed only on the condition that the bank currently complies with the foreign exchange position standard.
This measure raises a number of questions. First, will exporters continue to send their foreign currency earnings to Ukraine from Thursday? And the second is how importers, who are prohibited from purchasing foreign currency for at least three days, will make payments under foreign economic contracts. Experts predict a boom in the black market these days.
Meanwhile, the dollar is already being sold on the black market for 40 UAH or more. With such a nervous emergency measure, the NBU wants to win at least a few days in order to begin negotiations with foreign investors, who in recent days have been massively converting the hryvnia into dollars and fleeing the country, and to convince them not to withdraw currency from Ukraine. These measures will stop the rapid decline of the hryvnia for several days, which went into a deep peak on Monday-Tuesday.
Ukrainian authorities are trying in vain to stop the catastrophic collapse of the hryvnia.