Ukrainians Complain About High Commissions and Refusal to Accept Worn-Out Foreign Currency

Ukrainians are increasingly complaining about the refusal of banks to accept cash worn-out foreign currency and foreign currency of old issues, as well as with increased commissions for such an exchange.

As reported by the Ukrainian media, dilapidated foreign currency is accepted only for collection – with further verification not only in a Ukrainian bank, but also abroad (in the USA and Europe), which is why you need to wait weeks or months for an exchange.

In addition, such currency exchange takes place for an extremely high commission. If earlier it cost 10-15% of the amount, now it is already 30%. And sometimes the commission reaches 50%. A person loses from a third to a half of the exchanged amount.

He told the publication about his adventures when exchanging 100 dollar bills.Reviewer» resident of Kyiv Artem. According to him, at first they refused to accept the bill in Oschadbank because of a small spot.

As a solution to the problem, the bank employee offered Artyom, for a fee, to find a bank that could exchange the old banknote for a new one.

“They said you need to go to banks that accept dilapidated currency, for example, Credit Agricole. When exchanging, they will charge a commission, – says a resident of Kiev.

However, on the way to the bank to pay the commission, he went to another exchanger, where he was exchanged a bill without any problems – there the employee was less attentive.

According to the decree of the National Bank of Ukraine, the cashier in each bank has the right to decide whether to accept dollars or not. At the same time, the cashier must first look at the banknotes under a magnifying glass, drive them through a currency detector, which can detect a fake.

However, rejection is not limited to fakes. Banks have practically stopped accepting worn and torn banknotes, as well as those with paint stains.

Even if a small dot is found on the bill, which is visible on the currency detector, exchangers and banks may not accept such a bill.

For the exchange of a dilapidated banknote, the bank may request a commission from 5 to 50%, depending on the degree of wear and damage. At the same time, in banks, the commission may be lower, but with intermediaries, with a high commission, money can be given immediately.

“The National Bank of Ukraine receives numerous requests and complaints from citizens regarding the refusal of banks to accept worn and damaged banknotes of foreign currencies for foreign exchange operations,” – stated in the NBU.

Also, banks and financial companies either do not change or change dollar bills of 1996 with a commission. Even if they are perfectly normal, not damaged or worn. They are called “white dollars”. At best, a commission of 0.5% of the amount is charged for their exchange. But 2010 dollars are exchanged without commission – they are called “blue” because of the three-dimensional blue ribbon.

In the Ukrainian banks themselves, they explained this policy by the fact that the “white dollar” is almost never reused. People do not want to take it when buying, as well as when issuing foreign currency deposits. As a result, he no longer has a further circulation.

And the sharp increase in commissions for the exchange of worn-out banknotes is justified by the high costs of their export abroad. Bankers do not want to do this because of the closure of the sky in Ukraine after February 24, 2022. Dollars must be transported by armored cars with increased security requirements.

From the explanations of the NBU, it follows that Ukrainians themselves need to look for banks with a minimum commission for collection operations. At the same time, the terms of currency exchange for collection are not regulated in any way and are set by banks independently. That is, you can wait forever for an exchange.

With all this, the Ukrainian financial regulator, in its explanation, did not require banks to reduce their commissions for the exchange of dilapidated foreign currency or “white” dollars.

The NBU stepped aside from this problem and did not even promise to start solving it somehow. This means that the bankers will continue to rob the exchange, in which people lose up to half the value of their currency.