Key Takeaways:
- Wirex gives Ukrainians access to over 20 cryptocurrencies, promises crypto card.
- Crypto users in Ukrainian residents will be given two cards that will allow them to spend their digital currencies in stores and online.
- The company accepts over 20 cryptocurrencies, including major coins like BTC and ETH and popular altcoins like DOGE.
- Ukrainians will be given a virtual card linked to Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Ukrainians benefit from an expanding range of related services and products as cryptocurrencies gain popularity. In addition to new ways to buy and sell coins, crypto users in the country will be given two cards that will allow them to spend their digital currencies in stores and online.
Wirex, a U.K.-based cryptocurrency payment processor, has enabled Ukrainian residents to purchase and exchange cryptocurrencies on its platform. The company accepts over 20 cryptocurrencies, including major coins like BTC and ETH and popular altcoins like DOGE.
Ukrainians will be able to open crypto savings accounts based on defi products as well, according to Wirex, who told Forklog this week. The provider explained that these will return up to 16% compound interest on selected currencies annually and that the interest can also be credited in the native WXT currency.
Wirex also intends to issue its card to Ukrainian cryptocurrency holders, allowing them to spend their coins on goods and services provided by local merchants who do not accept cryptocurrency directly. This will be possible because of the instant conversion to hryvnia. Ukrainians will also be given a virtual card linked to Apple Pay and Google Pay.
The growing popularity of cryptocurrencies has propelled Ukraine to the forefront of adoption, while authorities in Kyiv have taken steps to regulate the crypto space. However, Wirex CTO Ruslan Kolodyazhny stated that the company has long planned to enter the Ukrainian market because it sees it as promising.
The British fintech was granted a license by the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom more than three years ago. Since then, consumer interest in its services has grown. Its Mastercard and Visa cards are now used by over 4 million people in 130 countries.
Ukrainians can anticipate similar products from domestic payment providers. Monobank, a Ukrainian online banking platform, announced last month that it is preparing to launch its own cryptocurrency card. The company complained that it had been waiting for approval from the National Bank of Ukraine for more than three months.
In October, Kirill Shevchenko, the head of the monetary authority, revealed that commercial banks had approached the central bank seeking permission to issue cards linked to cryptocurrency wallets. However, he emphasized that the regulator is still concerned about the risks associated with such transactions and certain challenges with financial monitoring.
Ukraine has yet to regulate its cryptocurrency market fully. The Ukrainian parliament passed the long-awaited law “On Virtual Assets” on its second and final reading in early September. The legislation received its first reading in December of last year, after which it was revised and reintroduced in the Verkhovna Rada in June of this year. However, President Volodymyr Zelensky returned the law in early October and requested further changes.
