The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) reduced its interventions in the interbank market last week by $59.9 million, or 5.6%, to $1.0145 billion, according to statistics on the regulator’s website.
According to the National Bank’s data, during the first four days of last week, the average daily net deficit in currency purchases and sales by legal entities decreased to $140.9 million from $168.5 million during the same period a week earlier, totaling $563.7 million.
In the retail foreign exchange market, the average daily net deficit decreased: from Monday through Thursday, it stood at $9.2 million, compared to $11.6 million the week before last, and non-cash currency sales exceeded purchases on all those days.
The official hryvnia-to-dollar exchange rate, which started last week at 44.6676 UAH/$1, weakened to 44.8110 UAH/$1 by the end of the week.
The same trend was observed in the cash market, where the hryvnia-to-dollar exchange rate weakened by 12 kopecks over the past week: the buying rate fell to 44.51 UAH/$1, and the selling rate to nearly 44.90 UAH/$1.
The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) revoked the insurance operating licenses of PJSC “Insurance Company ‘ASKO DS’” (Kyiv) and PJSC “Insurance Company ‘Peremoha’” (Kyiv).
According to the regulator’s website, the reason for this decision regarding ASKO DS was the company’s failure to submit a business recovery plan and a financing plan to the NBU, as revealed by the results of off-site supervision of the company’s activities.
The business recovery plan was intended to ensure the insurer’s financial recovery and compliance with solvency capital requirements within no more than 180 days from the date the violation of such requirements was identified, while the financing plan was to be implemented within no more than 90 days. Failure to fulfill these obligations led to the National Bank’s repeated rejection of the insurer’s business recovery plan and financing plan.
As for IC “Peremoha,” the results of off-site supervision of the company’s activities revealed that the insurer was engaging in risky activities that threatened the interests of its policyholders and/or other creditors.
Evidence of such activities included the omission and misrepresentation in the insurer’s information systems of data contained in contracts and other source documents, on the basis of which reporting data for the relevant reporting period are calculated or generated. The extent of the omissions and distortions exceeded 10% of the reporting data and the data contained in the insurer’s information systems, and more than 20% of the minimum absolute value of the minimum capital.
The decisions to impose sanctions on ASKO-DS Insurance Company and Peremoha Insurance Company take effect on July 24, 2026. As of that date, the companies lose the right to enter into contracts or make changes (such as extending the terms of existing contracts) regarding the provision of insurance services.
ASKO-DS Insurance Company was registered in November 1991. It has been a member of the Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau of Ukraine since 1994 and a member of the “Insurance Business” Association since 2015.
According to the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), the company ranks 30th among Ukraine’s non-life insurers in terms of premiums collected in 2025.
As previously reported, ASKO-DS Insurance Company (formerly Mir Insurance Company, Kyiv) was registered in 1992 and specializes in risk insurance.
According to the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), as of the first quarter of 2026, the shareholders of this insurance company were ABC Finance LLC—79.920% of the shares—and Anastasia Kolesnik—9%.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of the Republic of Turkey will tighten phytosanitary controls on the import, export, re-export, and transit of plants and plant products, including wheat, effective August 4, 2026, according to the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection (Derzhprodsposhchivsluzhba).
The tightening of requirements is related to Turkey’s adoption of a new Plant Quarantine Regulation, which repeals the previous Quarantine Regulation.
“Since wheat imported into the Republic of Turkey serves as a host plant for harmful organisms such as Tilletia barclayana, Tilletia indica, Tilletia caries, Tilletia controversa, and Tilletia laevis (Tilletia foetida), the Republic of Turkey has strengthened controls to detect these harmful organisms in wheat shipments,” the statement said.
If these pests are detected, Ukrainian exporters will be denied a phytosanitary certificate pursuant to Article 46 of Ukraine’s Law “On Plant Quarantine.”
On Monday, Ukraine is expected to see dry weather, though the western regions will experience moderate, and in some places heavy, rain during the day, along with thunderstorms; isolated areas may see hail and gusts of 15–20 m/s, according to the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Center.
The wind will be predominantly southwesterly, 7–12 m/s. Nighttime temperatures will range from 13–18°, daytime temperatures from 27–32°, and in the far west of the country from 21–26°.
In Kyiv on July 27, there will be no precipitation. Winds will be from the southwest at 7–12 m/s. Nighttime temperatures will range from 15–17°, and daytime temperatures from 30–32°.
According to data from the Boris Sreznevsky Central Geophysical Observatory, the highest daytime temperature recorded in Kyiv on July 27 was 37.1° in 1909, and the lowest nighttime temperature was 7.8° in 1898.
On Tuesday, July 28, short-lived rains and thunderstorms are expected across Ukraine; in the central regions—and during the day also in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions—there will be heavy rains in some areas, with hail and squalls of 15–20 m/s in isolated areas (no precipitation is expected at night in the east of the country or during the day in most areas of the Right Bank).
The wind will be from the northwest at 7–12 m/s; during the day across Ukraine, except in the east, there will be gusts of 15–20 m/s in some places.
Nighttime temperatures will range from 13–18°, and 10–15° in the western regions; daytime temperatures will range from 21–26°, and 24–29° in the south and southeast of the country.
In Kyiv on July 28, it will be cloudy with some sunny intervals. At night, there will be brief rain and thunderstorms; during the day, no precipitation is expected.
The wind will be from the northwest at 7–12 m/s. Nighttime temperatures will range from 15–17°, and daytime temperatures from 22–24°.
According to “Serbian Economist”, Wizz Air will open an operational base at Pristina International Airport in November 2026, stationing one Airbus A321neo aircraft with a capacity of 239 passengers there. The company plans to launch three new routes from Pristina.
Wizz Air has been operating flights from Pristina since 2017. The opening of a full-fledged base means that the aircraft and crew will be permanently based at the airport.
The Belgrade base is under threat
At the same time, Wizz Air continues its dispute with Serbian aviation authorities over changes to the rules governing foreign carriers.
In March 2026, the Serbian Civil Aviation Directorate adopted amendments to the regulations governing the issuance of permits to foreign airlines for international commercial operations.
According to Wizz Air’s interpretation, the new rules will not allow EU-registered carriers to maintain their current model of basing aircraft and crews in Belgrade, under which work shifts and flight rotations begin and end in Serbia.
Wizz Air Communications Director András Rado stated in June that unless the rules are changed, the company will be forced to close its base at Belgrade Airport in November. He emphasized, however, that the carrier does not want to leave.
Serbia’s Civil Aviation Directorate rejected the accusations, stating that no carrier is prohibited from operating flights between Serbia and EU countries. According to the regulator, the amendments do not restrict the right to operate flights but rather clarify the rules, which are the same for all foreign airlines.
As of mid-July, no final decision had been reached.
The closure of the Belgrade base would not necessarily mean a complete halt to Wizz Air’s flights to Serbia. The company could theoretically continue some flights using aircraft based in other countries. However, such a model typically results in fewer destinations, less convenient schedules, and limited opportunities to increase flight frequency.
Serbia does not recognize Kosovo’s independence, declared in 2008, and officially considers it an autonomous province of Kosovo and Metohija within the Republic of Serbia.
