Fintech isolation. What international payment services are available to Ukrainians and what are the alternatives?

By the end of February 2026, Ukrainians will lose another familiar fintech tool: Revolut will permanently cease serving residents of Ukraine. This is just another episode in the long history of restrictions that Ukrainians face in global payment services.Why are international payment giants in no hurry to return or fully enter Ukraine? Which of them are still operating, which have left, and which have remained "on the doorstep"? How does this fintech isolation affect businesses, freelancers, and the economy? And what alternatives can be found – in the text LIGA.netWhich services are operating in Ukraine with restrictions? RevolutA European neobank that allows you to open online accounts and have a multi-currency card. In 2025, Revolut gave Ukrainians the opportunity officially open accounts. However, within a few weeks, Neobank suspended registration for new users from Ukraine and stated that it was working on restoring it.In December 2025, the company announced that it would cease operations in Ukraine and close the accounts of Ukrainian clients from February 22, 2026. This only applies to residents whose accounts are opened through Revolut Bank UAB. The accounts of Ukrainians who reside and are officially registered in the countries of the European Economic Area will continue to be serviced.The problem was that Revolut never received a license from the NBU to operate legally in Ukraine."We are currently unable to provide services to residents of Ukraine, but we remain committed to making them available in the future and will announce any changes," the company added in response to a request LIGA.netWiseThis is a British international money transfer service. It has been operating in Ukraine since 2014 and allowed users to receive money from any country, send funds abroad, and exchange currency at the real exchange rate.However, starting in August 2022, the service gradually phased out its functionality in Ukraine. First, transfers in hryvnia stopped working, then Ukrainians lost the ability to register new accounts in the system, and from December 2024, Wise stopped processing payments to Visa cards of Ukrainian banks.Due to the war in Ukraine, Wise found it difficult to monitor local events and guarantee a safe and reliable service for customers. The company said this in a comment LIGA.netIn addition to Ukrainians no longer being able to register in the system, Wise also does not serve customers located in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions of Ukraine and does not support transfers to and from these regions."We want as many people as possible to have access to our services, including in Ukraine. We may resume providing services in the future, but we cannot provide exact dates at this time," Wise said.Stripe This is one of the leading global payment services, widely used by businesses in the EU, the US, and other countries to process online payments and subscriptions.Stripe has never officially operated in Ukraine: the service does not support opening accounts for Ukrainian legal entities and has not entered our market. It is also known that the company has not applied for a license or permit from the NBU.In 2021, in the government they spoke that negotiations are underway and Stripe will definitely enter the Ukrainian market. However, nothing has changed since then. And upon request LIGA.net company did not respond about its plans.PayPalAn American international payment service. Although the service is present in Ukraine, it has limited functionality. Until 2022, Ukrainians could create an account, but it was impossible to accept payments or withdraw money to cards of Ukrainian banks.In March 2022, PayPal allowed Ukrainians to send and receive money between personal accounts. However, these PayPal accounts still do not support balance storage or the connection of multi-currency accounts. Therefore, you can send and receive money between accounts, but you can only withdraw it to a Ukrainian card.Upon request LIGA.net company did not respond regarding its future plans.Read also"For coffee" and "debt repayment": for which words can a payment be blocked?Why aren't payment services coming to Ukraine?The main reason why major international payment services are not yet fully operational in Ukraine is a combination of war risks and complex rules of the game. As KSE Institute analysts Sofia Mazepa and Dmytro Krukovets explain, war affects any business: it reduces projected profits, narrows the market, and increases the risk of investment loss. At the same time, for many global companies, this is no longer a decisive factor – they have learned to live with such uncertainty.Ukrainian regulation remains a much more tangible barrier. In 2021, Ukraine attempted to simplify the situation by adopting the Law on Payment Services, which is based on the European PSD2 rules. It formally opened the market and brought Ukrainian legislation closer to EU standards. However, the key requirement – full localization of business – remained."To operate in Ukraine, an international fintech company must obtain a local NBU license, open a local representative office, and set up a financial monitoring system in accordance with Ukrainian standards," the KSE Institute notes, adding that this is quite difficult even for large international players and not always worth it.For global services, this is a matter of cold calculation. According to the NBU, as of now, neither Stripe, nor PayPal, nor Revolut, nor Wise have applied to the regulator for a Ukrainian license. The NBU stated this in response to an inquiry LIGA.net"The costs of maintaining a separate compliance office and navigating local bureaucracy simply do not justify the expected profits. That is why PayPal has chosen a strategy of minimal presence," say KSE Institute analysts Sofia Mazepa and Dmytro Krukovets.As a result, Ukraine remains formally open to international payment services, but in practice, it has a high barrier to entry. For global fintech companies, this market looks promising, but not yet profitable enough to invest in a complex and expensive launch.Read alsoHow banks will operate during a blackout. Scenarios from Sense Bank, Oschadbank, and OTPHow does this affect the economy?The lack of full access to global payment services creates an additional burden for businesses and the state, slowing down economic processes and encouraging the shadow economy. This is according to KSE Institute analyst Sofia Mazepa and macroeconomic analysis expert Dmytro Krukovets.These restrictions hit digital service exporters, small businesses, and e-commerce the hardest. Due to inconvenient or little-known payment interfaces, Ukrainian companies lose some foreign customers at the payment stage, which directly reduces their competitiveness in the global market.At the same time, this pushes Ukrainian business owners to register companies abroad to gain access to payment services that are familiar to their clients. The KSE Institute says that to access Stripe and work normally with foreign clients, Ukrainian startups and entrepreneurs are forced to register companies in other jurisdictions, particularly in the USA, or become e-residents of Estonia. As of the beginning of 2025, over 7,500 Ukrainians hold Estonian e-residency.Isolation from global fintech giants also affects the banking system. Part of the IT sector and freelancers are switching to cryptocurrency payments, which takes significant amounts of funds out of the regulated financial system and reduces bank liquidity."Billions of dollars are circulating outside the regulated banking system," conclude the analysts at the KSE Institute.Read alsoUAH 426 million in fines in 2025. Poroshenko's and Tigipko's banks are among the top violators.What are the alternatives?Despite limited access to global payment services, Ukrainian businesses and freelancers have gradually adapted to the new conditions. KSE Institute analysts note that there is currently no full-fledged replacement for Stripe or PayPal for Ukraine, but working alternatives have been formed for different types of activities.What services can be used as an alternative:Freelance and contract work. Payoneer remains the most stable option, having maintained full operation in Ukraine and integration with major banks. This allows you to officially receive foreign currency earnings and declare income.Sale of digital products and software.For businesses that critically need Stripe-level infrastructure, the Merchant of Record model has become an alternative. Services like Paddle and Lemon Squeezy handle payments and taxes, allowing businesses to operate in the global market without opening a foreign company.Personal transfers and international settlements.Wise operates with limitations and is primarily suitable for IBAN transfers, while Fin.do is often used for fast P2P payments. For instant cross-border settlements, cryptocurrency is increasingly being used, which has effectively filled the niche left by traditional services.

Comments