KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s parliament on Friday accepted the resignation of the country’s top banker, who has stepped down citing political pressure. National Bank head Yakiv Smolii submitted his letter of resignation Wednesday, pointing at “systematic political pressure” as the reason for his decision. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy quickly accepted it and asked lawmakers to approve the decision. Smolii told lawmakers that he stepped down to draw a red line against “further attempts to undermine the institutional foundation of Ukraine's central bank.”He noted that the National Bank has faced continuous pressure aimed at forcing it to “make decisions that lack economic basis and could cost the Ukrainian economy dearly.”

Source: International New York Times July 03, 2020 17:03 UTC