Ukraine overhauls currency: Kopiika out, shah in by September 2026
Photo: Andrii Pyshnyi (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
The withdrawal of kopecks from circulation and the transition to steps currently depend on the adoption of relevant legislation by the Verkhovna Rada. This decision requires political will, according to Andrii Pyshnyi, head of the National Bank of Ukraine.
He expresses hope that steps instead of kopecks will be introduced by September 2, 2026, at the latest—the 30th anniversary of the Ukrainian hryvnia—or even earlier.
"We are obliged to do this — to return the specific Ukrainian historical name to the coin. We have it, and it is not a kopiika. A kopiika is a piece of Moscow that remains in our pockets, on our price tags, and most importantly, in our minds," he said.
According to Pyshnyi, until the issue of kopiika is finally resolved, the 1996 monetary reform will not be complete.
"Because this pile of rubbish left here by Moscow connects us with it, with Minsk and Tiraspol. Because nowhere else is there a kopiika as a small denomination of the national currency. They left it here deliberately," the head of the NBU is convinced.
Coins in Ukraine
After the introduction of the measures, Pyshnyi notes, there will be a gradual withdrawal from circulation of the 10-kopiikas coin, but over the next few years, the 50-kopeck coin will remain in circulation.
"There is demand for it from the retail sector. This means that we will have to maintain and mint some of these coins," he adds.
Currently, according to Pyshnyi, almost 1.4 billion 50-kopiika coins are in circulation. And every year, the NBU has to mint them to maintain the quality of cash circulation. "And we have to, given that there is no decision by the Verkhovna Rada, mint another 20 million 50-kopiika coins this year," he explains.
The NBU notes that no additional expenses from the state budget are required for the replacement and transition from the pro-Russian name kopiika to the specific Ukrainian name shah. There will be no immediate withdrawal of kopiika from circulation.
"At some point, two types of small change coins will be in circulation at the same time — 50 kopiika and 50 shah," Pyshnyi adds.
Kopiika and shah
The NBU announced that it plans to begin removing 10-kopeck coins from circulation on October 1, 2025.
Last year, the National Bank of Ukraine initiated a change in the name of small change coins from kopiika to shah. The NBU plans to mint only coins with a denomination of 50 shahs.
