This ruling opens the way for citizens of other countries to transfer electronic money to accounts in Ukrainian banks.
“Individual is entitled to receive electronic money, issued by the nonresident emitter, from nonresidents, provided that the international Internet payment systems provide a repayment of electronic money by transferring funds to individual’s account in the resident banks,” reads the decree by the NBU.
The amendments are a step closer to attracting the international online payment system PayPal into Ukraine, according to Ilia Kenigshtein, CEO of Creative Quarter and advisor to Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi. Currently, Ukrainians can make payments through PayPal using their credit cards issued in Ukraine, but can’t receive payments through the system.
“Now PayPal is left with few reasons to continue ignoring Ukraine,” Kenigshtein told the Kyiv Post on Feb. 14.
But he added that “these changes do not solve everything.”
Kenigshtein is meeting with PayPal representatives in March to discuss the launch of the company’s services in Ukraine.
Now that the National Bank allowed receiving electronic payments, the only obstacle for PayPal to start operating in Ukraine is the lengthy process of registration and receiving a banking license.
The decree issued on Feb. 13 is the first part of the National Bank’s three-point plan to liberalize the banking legislation and make electronic payment system available for Ukrainian users. Two more decrees are to follow soon to finalize the process.
Kyiv Post staff writer Denys Krasnikov can be reached at krasnikov@kyivpost.com.
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