Ukrainians offered new crypto services, Bitcoin cards – Fintech

Along with the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies, Ukrainians are enjoying a growing range of related services and products. In addition to new options for purchasing and trading coins, crypto users in the country will be offered two cards to spend their digital currencies in stores and online.

Wirex gives Ukrainians access to over 20 cryptocurrencies, promises crypto card

UK-based crypto payment processor Wirex has enabled residents of Ukraine to buy and exchange cryptocurrencies on its platform. The company supports more than 20 cryptocurrencies, including major coins like BTC and ETH as well as popular altcoins like DOGE.

Ukrainians can also open crypto savings accounts based on open defi products, Wirex told Forklog this week. These would return up to 16% compound interest annually on selected currencies, the provider explained, pointing out that the interest can also be credited in the native WXT currency.

Wirex also plans to issue its card to Ukrainian crypto holders, giving them the opportunity to spend their coins on goods and services offered by local merchants that do not accept cryptocurrency directly. This will be possible through immediate conversion to hryvnia. Ukrainians will also receive a virtual card that they can add to Apple Pay and Google Pay.

The increasing popularity of cryptocurrencies has made Ukraine one Leader assuming while authorities in Kyiv have taken steps to regulate the crypto space. According to Wirex CTO Ruslan Kolodyazhny, the company has long been planning to enter the Ukrainian market as it considers it promising.

The British fintech received a license from the British Financial Conduct Authority more than three years ago. Since then, its services have enjoyed growing consumer interest. Over 4 million people in 130 countries now use its Mastercard and Visa cards.

Ukrainian Monobank offers another Bitcoin card

Ukrainians can also expect similar products from domestic payment providers. Last month, Ukrainian online banking platform Monobank announced that it was ready to issue its own cryptocurrency card. The company complained that it had waited more than three months for approval from the National Bank of Ukraine.

In October, the head of the monetary authority, Kirill Shevchenko, announced that the Central Bank had been contacted by commercial banks seeking permission to issue cards linked to crypto wallets. However, he stressed that the regulator remains concerned about the risks associated with such transactions and certain financial monitoring challenges.

Ukraine has yet to comprehensively regulate its crypto market. Ukrainian Parliament assumed the long-awaited law “On Virtual Assets” in early September, when the legislature approved the bill in its second and final reading. The law passed its first reading last December, after which it was revised and demonstrated June this year again in the Verkhovna Rada. However, in early October, President Volodymyr Zelensky returned the law and called for further changes.

Do you expect Ukrainian regulators to soften their stance on crypto-related products and services? Tell us in the comments section below.

Lubomir Tassev

Lubomir Tassev is a tech-savvy journalist from Eastern Europe who likes Hitchens' quote: "Being a writer is what I am, not what I do." In addition to crypto, blockchain and fintech, international politics and economics are two other sources of inspiration.

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