PayPal Changes Service In Ukraine, Users Can Accept Money Transfers From Credit Cards

JAKARTA – PayPal Holdings Inc on Thursday, March 17, has expanded its services to allow Ukrainian citizens and refugees to receive payments from abroad. This is a move that a senior Ukrainian official has called a big help as Russian troops continue to attack the country.

PayPal Chief Executive Dan Schulman told Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov in a letter that Ukrainian citizens can also transfer funds from their PayPal accounts to eligible credit and debit cards. The company has waived fees for the transaction until June 30.

More than 3 million Ukrainians have fled the country since Russia launched its invasion on February 24.

PayPal's move will allow refugees and Ukrainian citizens to receive funds from friends and family members in the United States and elsewhere. PayPal could also be used to transfer social payments by future governments, according to Vladyslav Rashkovan, executive director of alternative Ukraine at the International Monetary Fund. .

"It makes a big difference for people," Rashkovan told Reuters. He praised Schulman's personal involvement in achieving change in just two weeks.

Rashkovan said he spoke to several Ukrainians on the street, outside his office, about the new capabilities. They immediately opened an account at PayPal.com/ua/home to send money to their relatives. Ukrainian officials have been pushing for the expansion of this service since 2015, after Russia annexed Crimea.

PayPal said it would start providing the expanded service last Thursday, allowing customers to send and receive funds from their Ukrainian PayPal Wallet in US dollars, Canadian dollars, British pounds and euros.

Once a customer transfers funds from their PayPal Wallet to an eligible Visa or MasterCard debit or credit card, the money will be available in the currency associated with the card.

While PayPal waives its fees for a few weeks, it notes exchange rates and fees charged by the customer's card issuer or bank account may still apply. Previously, Ukrainian citizens could send money from a PayPal account, but could not receive funds.

PayPal earlier this month closed its service in Russia. They joined many financial and technology companies in suspending operations there after the invasion of Ukraine.