On 9 June 2022, the NBU and Sveriges Riksbank signed an agreement that will allow the Ukrainians staying in Sweden to exchange cash hryvnias for the Swedish krona.
Under the agreement with Sveriges Riksbank, adult citizens of Ukraine with permission to temporarily stay in Sweden will be able to exchange their cash hryvnias for the Swedish krona at the branches of the largest Swedish-based exchange – Forex – which has 53 branches located across the country, effective 15 June 2022 or thereabouts.
This mechanism enables the exchange of cash hryvnias for the Swedish krona within an established limit of UAH 10,000. The agreement stipulates that only 100-hryvnia, 200-hryvnia, 500-hryvnia, and 1,000-hryvnia bills will be exchanged (lower denomination banknotes and coins will not be accepted). Significantly worn-out and defective banknotes will not be exchanged.
These transactions will be based on a fixed exchange rate of the hryvnia against the Swedish krona that will be set by the NBU. Exchange rate information will be updated every Monday and published on Sveriges Riksbank’s website.
“The signing of this agreement comes as another important step in our effective cooperation with Sveriges Riksbank. I am sincerely grateful to my Swedish colleagues for their assistance in addressing this vital issue for the Ukrainians who have relocated abroad as they fled the war,” said NBU Governor Kyrylo Shevchenko.
As previously reported, the NBU has since the start of the war signed cash hryvnia exchange agreements with Narodowy Bank Polski, Germany’s Deutsche Bundesbank and Federal Ministry of Finance, National Bank of Belgium and the Bank of Italy.
Meanwhile, the NBU is in active talks with the central banks of other partner countries to enable displaced Ukrainians to exchange cash hryvnias for local currencies.