Ukraine Government Now Accepts Bitcoin and Ethereum as Legal Tender

Ukraine's president signed the bill into law yesterday, he had vetoed a similar bill in September 2021.

On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a bill into law that makes Bitcoin and Ethereum legal tender in the nation. The move was triggered by the fact that more than $100 million in crypto donations have been made to help Ukraine's war effort against Russian invaders.

Ukraine's Ministry and Committee on Digital Transformation confirmed the news in its official statement, also issued on Wednesday, stating that the law enables development of a path forward to establish clear oversight and regulatory responsibilities of digital assets by government agencies. It also puts in place parameters regarding ownership, classification, and legal status of various cryptocurrencies.

The announcement further stated that its Ministry of Finance is actively working to amend the Tax and Civil Codes of Ukraine to fully "launch the market for virtual assets."

Crypto has helped Ukraine fight Russian invaders and help displaced citizens

Since Russia launched its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, more than $100 million worth of crypto donations have been made directly to Ukraine to pay for military supplies and humanitarian needs related to the war.

The digital donations started flooding in shortly after the attack, when the National Bank of Ukraine announced that it would no longer issue electronic funds in the country's currency -- called the hryvnia -- and that it would curb cash withdrawals at banks, as well as freeze the foreign exchange rate of the hryvnia.

In a Twitter message posted on Friday, Mar. 11, Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation, Alex Bornyakov, stated that the cryptocurrency donations have been critical to its war and humanitarian efforts.

"Crypto assets proved extremely helpful in facilitation of funding flows to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Huge thanks to everyone who donated to the Crypto Fund of Ukraine. Each and every helmet and vest bought via crypto donations is currently saving Ukrainian soldiers' lives," the tweet read.

In that tweet, Bornyakov also listed exactly what the funds have been spent on so far:

• 5,500 bulletproof jackets
• 410,000 packed lunches
• 500 ballistic plates for bulletproof vests
• 3,125 thermal imagers and optics
• 500 helmets
• 3,427 medicines
• 60 walkie-talkies

Last September, President Zelenskyy had rejected a similar legislative proposal to legalize cryptocurrencies. Ukraine now becomes the second country in the world to adopt crypto as legal tender, joining El Salvador which made the decision to accept Bitcoin as legal tender last September.