NBU jointly with NABU association working on introduction of IBAN in Ukraine
The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) jointly with the Independent Association of Banks of Ukraine (NABU) has started working on joint approaches to implement ISO 13616 (International bank account number, IBAN) standard and ISO 9362 (Business identifier code, BIC) by Ukrainian banks, the central bank has written on its Facebook page.
The press service of the NBU told Interfax-Ukraine that by 2020 the use of IBAN will be mandatory for all clients of banks when they transfer money both in national and foreign currencies.
"After the introduction of the IBAN international bank account number, a new account number will be assigned to all clients of Ukrainian banks, including participants in payment systems that have a bank account, that is, all transfers will be made using IBAN," the press service said.
According to the NBU, the application of these standards will facilitate the simplification of remittances and reduction in their cost, it will reduce the number of erroneous payments, speed up the processing of transfers, including interbank payments through the Electronic Transfer System of the NBU and cross-border transfers, and the compatibility of future domestic payment systems with European ones.
"The transition of Ukrainian banks in the medium term to the application of these international standards will enhance the inclusion into the European payment environment, it will give new functionality to customers of Ukrainian banks," Director of the payment systems and innovation development department of the NBU Oleksandr Yablunivsky said in the message to Facebook.
According to Deputy Director of the payment systems and innovation development department of the NBU Natalia Lapko, who was mentioned in the message, some Ukrainian banks have already implemented the IBAN and BIC standards for cross-border transfers.
According to the NBU, at present six Ukrainian banks have confirmed information on the availability of IBAN and its use for cross-border transfers: Ukreximbank, Raiffeisen Bank Aval, First Ukrainian International Bank (FUIB), International Investment Bank, Alfa Bank and ING Bank Ukraine (all based in Kyiv).