The limit will not be applied to the accounts of volunteers and people whose monthly income from confirmed sources exceeds the amount of the established limit, the regulator said.
The National Bank of Ukraine has set a limit of 150 thousand hryvnias per month for card-to-card (P2P) transfers from individuals. This restriction will be introduced from October 1 for six months, the press service of the regulator reported on Tuesday, August 27.
“The limit applies only to outgoing transfers to all client accounts opened in one bank to the accounts of other individuals,” the message said.
At the same time, the limit will not be applied to the accounts of volunteers who meet the criteria specified by the resolution, and to those whose monthly income from confirmed sources exceeds the amount of the established limit.
Also, the limit does not apply when transferring funds between the client’s own accounts opened in the same bank, and for transfers of legal entities. Transactions using IBAN details are not limited.
According to the National Bank, 98% of the bank’s clients make transfers of no more than 150 thousand hryvnias per month.
At the same time, the regulator hopes that the introduced limit will help reduce the use of the payment infrastructure in illegal activities, especially the use of “drop” accounts, which is a common mechanism for the functioning of the shadow economy.
The NBU explained that “drops” are people who, for a fee, transfer details and data of their card accounts to third parties for use. These accounts are used as transit accounts for transferring and laundering illegal funds. Across the system, we’re talking about tens of thousands of “dormant” and active accounts.
According to some large banks, business relations with more than 80 thousand clients have already been severed by 2024 based on participation in drop schemes.
The analysis of the NBU shows that about 200 billion Hryvnias per year can pass through drop cards.
Let’s recall that in May the National Bank announced its intention to introduce limits on transferring money from card to card. Initially it was proposed to introduce a limit of up to 30 transfers and up to 100 thousand Hryvnia per month.
The NBU also said that the announcement of the restrictions “caused a flurry of criticism and misunderstanding.”
Source: korrespondent
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