Ukraine's international reserves remain sufficient to smooth out currency fluctuations, but their stability largely depends on external financing, export earnings and the scale of the National Bank's interventions. Oleksiy Fedinskyi, director of the Experts Club information and analytical center, stated this on Ukrainian Radio.
As of August 1, 2026 Ukraine's reserves amounted to about $51.2 billion. Club, this is approximately $1.3 thousand per inhabitant – the 44th place among the 47 European countries and territories included in the study. For comparison, in Poland the indicator is close to $8 thousand, and in Switzerland it exceeds $120 thousand per person.
Fedinsky emphasized that reserves per resident are not an indicator of the personal well-being of the population and do not have a direct cause and effect relationship with the value of the consumer basket.
"This figure does not have a direct impact on the consumer basket. But it is important for the economy and the financial system to hold on and fulfill their functions for the state," he said.
According to the expert, direct comparison of Ukraine with Switzerland or the countries of the Eurozone requires caution. Switzerland is an international financial center, while the exchange rate of the euro is determined by the economy of the entire European Union and does not require separate support from each national central bank.
Inflationary adjustment also significantly changes the assessment of the current level of reserves. In 2010, one resident of Ukraine accounted for nominally about $744 of reserves. In July 2026 dollars, this is about $1.13 thousand. So, the current figure of $1.3 thousand exceeds the level of 2010 by only about 14%, although in nominal terms the difference reaches 74%.
“Nominally, the current figure is almost twice as high, but if you take into account the inflation of the dollar, it is about the level of 2007-2010. At the same time, there was no need to maintain the economy in the conditions of a full-scale war", – noted Fedinsky.
The expert also cautioned against thinking of reserves as a stock of cash that is physically stored in one place.
"There is a common perception that gold and currency reserves are a large room where gold and currency are stacked. In fact, this is not the case. Most of the reserves are highly liquid assets that can be quickly converted into currency for interventions," – he explained.
As of July 31, foreign currency assets accounted for 91.43% of reserves. Securities provided 53.26% of the total volume, currency and deposits – 38.18%. Monetary gold accounted for 7.02%, IMF – special drawing rights accounted for 1.54%. Such a structure enables the NBU to quickly obtain currency liquidity, but the value of individual assets may change depending on interest rates, exchange rates and the price of gold.
Reserves are especially important due to the large foreign trade deficit. In January-July 2026, Ukraine imported goods worth $58.1 billion, while exports amounted to $24.1 billion. The commodity gap reached about $34 billion. Under such conditions, the NBU sells foreign currency to cover the structural deficit of the market and limit sharp fluctuations of the hryvnia.
If the pressure on the foreign exchange market intensifies, the NBU first increases its interventions. The next stage may be a strengthening of the credit policy of banks, and later the business begins to place exchange rate risks in the cost of goods and services. This is most quickly affected by fuel, machinery, cars, medicines and other goods with a high import component.
At the same time, the indicator of coverage of 4.2 months of future imports does not mean that without new external inflows, the reserves will mechanically disappear in four months.
"It cannot be said that if the partners stop providing assistance, the reserves will disappear in four months. Export revenues, IMF programs, restructuring and other solutions may be applied. A scenario in which the state will simply draw money from reserves and throw it on the market is unlikely," – said Fedinsky.
Speaking of personal finances, the expert advised Ukrainians to first calculate monthly income and critically necessary expenses. The first level of the family reserve should cover about a month of expenses and be partly kept in cash in case of blackouts or problems with the banking infrastructure. It is advisable to form the next level for three to six months, using available bank accounts and short deposits. For families with unstable incomes, children, chronic diseases, or the risk of moving, a reserve of six to twelve months is desirable. It does not directly depend on the amount of gold and currency reserves the state has. First of all, a person should think about his own reserves," – concluded Fedinsky.
Earlier, economist and founder of Experts Club Maksym Urakin, commenting on the level of Ukrainian reserves, emphasized that their absolute volume should not be taken as a guarantee of complete currency security.
"Reserves at the level of $51.2 billion remain a significant currency buffer, but the absolute indicator itself should not create the impression of complete security. The stability of reserves depends on the rhythm of international financing, the volume of NBU interventions, debt payments and the economy's ability to increase export revenue," Urakin said.
