Ukrainian central bank Governor Kyrylo Shevchenko has unexpectedly tendered his resignation to President Volodymyr Zelensky, citing health reasons.
"Due to the health-related issues that cannot be ignored any longer, I made a difficult decision," the 49-year-old said in a statement released by the National Bank of Ukraine on Tuesday evening.
"I thank the president of Ukraine for the vote of confidence and the work we were able to do together before and during the war."
The work of the Ukrainian financial system had been secured without interruptions, he said, despite Russia's war on the country.
According to media reports, a conflict between the Finance Ministry and the central bank had recently intensified.
Shevchenko, who took up the job in July 2020, has advocated savings because of the chronic budget deficit and expressed concern that Ukraine was on the brink of hyperinflation. The country's central bank has effectively been printing money to finance the government.
In the current draft budget for 2023, half of the budget has to be financed by loans, some of which are taken out abroad.
Inflation in the war-torn country had risen to 23.8% in August. The central bank had raised the key interest rate from 10 to 25% after the war began to curb inflation.
The national currency, the hryvnia, has lost about 50% of its value against the US dollar since the war began.
But despite all of Ukraine's economic woes, no panic has broken out on the currency market and there is no longer a massive outflow of capital, Shevchenko's statement said.
Shevchenko had headed the central bank since July 2020. His predecessor, Yakiv Smoly, had submitted his resignation due to systematic political pressure.
