What lies behind the draft law on cryptocurrency reserves: risks and challenges
13 June 11:31
on June 10, the parliament registered draft law No. 13356, which proposes to allow the National Bank of Ukraine to take virtual assets into account as part of state reserves at its own discretion. This was reported by one of the initiators of the initiative, MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak, citing information on the Verkhovna Rada website.
“The draft law gives the National Bank the right, but not the obligation, to include virtual assets in Ukraine’s reserves. How much, when, and how exactly – this will be the responsibility of the regulator itself. We are not obliging, we are only opening up this possibility,”
– the MP explained.
Zheleznyak emphasized that the initiative does not contradict Ukraine’s international obligations, including agreements with the International Monetary Fund. According to him, the creation of crypto reserves is currently being discussed in many countries, and Ukraine can join this trend.
“If the National Bank does not want to invest in cryptocurrencies, it is its right,”
– the MP added.
Today, virtual assets in Ukraine are already regulated at the level of the Civil Code as “digital things,” which allows for the exercise of ownership over them. This makes it possible to use them as a reserve asset even without a separate specialized law, which has not yet entered into force due to the lack of amendments to the Tax Code.
According to Zheleznyak, the initiative does not depend on the support of the Tax Committee, in particular its chairman Danylo Hetmantsev, and is autonomous from the main law on virtual assets.
Ukraine already has some crypto assets, including those obtained through donations or confiscated property. However, they are still not enough to form a full-fledged gold and foreign exchange reserve based on cryptocurrencies.
Will cryptocurrency be included in Ukraine’s foreign exchange reserves: economists explain
Thus, after the registration of the draft law, the expert community started a discussion: what exactly are we talking about – cryptocurrencies like bitcoin or state digital currencies, which a number of central banks have already started testing?
The Chairman of the Committee of Economists of Ukraine Andriy Novak exclusively for
“The NBU wants to add electronic money or virtual currencies to the reserves, in addition to the classic instruments such as currency, bonds, and gold. This can be either the electronic hryvnia or cryptocurrencies,”
– Novak explained.
According to him, some countries have already integrated cryptocurrencies into their reserve structure, while others are considering this possibility. The main reason is the rising value of major digital currencies, which can potentially increase the total value of gold and foreign exchange reserves.
“This is not practiced everywhere, but there are precedents. Therefore, cryptocurrencies can be part of the state reserve, of course, in a limited amount – as part of the portfolio, not the basis,”
– says Novak.
Digital dollar, not bitcoin: an alternative opinion
However, another economist, Oleg Pendzin, in a conversation with journalists
“This draft law does not refer to bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. It is about the digital euro, the digital dollar, and the digital hryvnia. That is, the assets that are formed and controlled by states,”
– he emphasized.
According to Pendzin, cryptocurrencies cannot be considered reliable assets for reserves due to their instability.
“Crypto assets are essentially air. They are not backed by anything, they have no guarantor, and their value is based only on supply and demand. Such volatility makes them unsuitable for the formation of state reserves,”
– explains the expert.
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The electronic hryvnia is already in the system
Ukraine already has a digital currency, the electronic hryvnia. According to Pendzin, this is the currency that the draft law is about.
“The National Bank is promoting the idea of including digital money – not bitcoin – in the reserves. These are fundamentally different things,”
– the expert says.
NBU reserves are not for speculation
According to investment banker and financial expert Sergiy Fursa for the YouTube channel Telegraf UA, it is impossible to imagine that the NBU will use part of its reserves to buy crypto assets that it considers “worthless.”
“This will not happen, it will not happen. Where we are heading, which is really important, is the legalization of crypto instruments, because there is a lot of money floating around. Before this bubble bursts, we need to tax these instruments,”
– the banker said.
Fursa emphasized that cryptocurrencies are often used to move money abroad and into the shadows, so they should be strictly controlled.
“No serious central bank in the world has come even close to including cryptocurrencies in its reserves. And this draft law brings more problems than benefits,”
– the expert added.
Fursa believes that crypto assets are primarily a speculative instrument, which, due to its high volatility and lack of guarantees, is unacceptable for reserves.
“Bitcoin is just a speculative instrument that is virtually worthless. The central bank cannot invest its reserves in speculative instruments, as this contradicts its task of maintaining macro stability,”
– the expert stated.
No need to rush
Thus, the initiative opens up the possibility for the National Bank to add virtual assets to state reserves, but experts warn about the high volatility of cryptocurrencies and the lack of guarantees, which could undermine macro stability. For now, crypto assets should be legalized and taxed rather than used as a reserve instrument.
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