The son of Vasyl Stus, Dmitry Stus, provided the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) with written permission to use his father’s name and image on the new 2000 UAH banknote. This is the first time in the history of Ukraine when a person whose portrait appeared on a banknote has a living relative. So the situation with obtaining official permission is unprecedented..

The head of the NBU Andrey Pyshny spoke about the results of communication with Dmitry Stus on his Facebook page. According to Pyshny, they held two meetings in total, and it was during the first that written permission was received.

" How their choices during difficult times continue to influence us decades later.. How important it is today not just to preserve the memory of such people, but also to make it alive and understandable for future generations. Discussed further cooperation. During the meeting, Dmitry Vasilyevich provided the NBU with written permission to use his father’s name and image on the new 2,000 hryvnia banknote, which we plan to present together in early September,” Pyshny noted.

The second meeting was a tour of the National Museum of Taras Shevchenko, which is headed by Dmitry Stus. According to Pyshny, this experience allowed him to compare the phenomena of Taras Shevchenko and Leonardo da Vinci.

" At the same time, Leonardo was born free and received an excellent education, and Taras Shevchenko was a serf, a man who was the “property” of the landowner, and this makes his phenomenon almost unprecedented. A man born in captivity was able to form the Ukrainian idea long before the emergence of the Ukrainian state. Essentially, laying the foundations of modern Ukrainian literature. Were we able to tell this deep story to the world Or should they still do it I value such meetings, which leave questions and a desire to return to the topics discussed, most of all,” added Pyshny.

The new 2000 UAH banknote, which depicts the poet, dissident and human rights activist Vasyl Stus, will go into circulation in Ukraine on September 4, 2026. The date of introduction of the new banknote was chosen symbolically. It was on September 4, 1965, during the premiere of the film “Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors” that Vasyl Stus, Vyacheslav Chornovil and Ivan Dzyuba held the first open protest in the USSR against the political repression of the Ukrainian intelligentsia.

After the introduction of a new banknote, there is no need to specifically exchange money or contact banks. The 2000 UAH banknote will gradually come into circulation through banks and ATMs and be used along with other denominations. 1000 UAH banknotes will remain legal tender and continue to be in circulation without any restrictions.

The design of the new banknote follows the modified hryvnia banknotes of the 2014-2019 era. However, in terms of size and color, it is noticeably different from banknotes of other denominations:.

On the front side of the banknote there is a portrait of Stus. On the opposite side is the building of the philological faculty of Donetsk National University, where the poet studied.

Also on the banknote was a line from Stus’s poem, written in conclusion: “And the candle flutters with the dawn, which our great-grandson will call day.”. The inscription is made in a font based on the graphics of Georgiy Narbut, the author of the first Ukrainian hryvnia of the era of the Ukrainian People's Republic.

According to Pyshny, the banknote is a kind of “book” in which each element has a symbolic meaning. The design also uses mosaic motifs by artist Alla Gorskaya, in particular the image of a kestrel, which became a metaphor for the Ukrainian sixties, who maintained freedom even under the pressure of the Soviet system.

“This is the first banknote in the world to use the unique AnimaTM Color window security tape - polychrome and animated - to enhance security.. The ribbon design was commissioned by the National Bank in blue and yellow colors. When the angle of inclination of the banknote changes, a movement effect and a change in image are observed on it - the Trident is replaced by the hryvnia sign. The manufacturer presented this ribbon as a new product only at the end of April 2026, and now we have already sold it on a new banknote,” Pyshny also noted.

The very decision to introduce a new denomination is connected not only with honoring a historical figure, but also with changes in the economy - 7 years after the appearance of the 1000 UAH banknote, salaries and the volume of cash in circulation have increased significantly.

According to Pyshny, since the introduction of the thousandth bill, the average monthly salary of Ukrainians has increased approximately three times, while consumer prices have almost doubled. If seven years ago about ten 1000 UAH banknotes were enough to pay an average salary in cash, now this requires more than thirty.

Another argument is a significant increase in the amount of cash. If in 2019 there were almost 390 billion UAH in circulation, then as of July 1, 2026 this figure exceeded 970 billion UAH. The NBU explains that the additional demand for cash was largely formed due to a full-scale war, when the ability to pay with banknotes remains critical for residents of front-line territories.

In addition, today more than 55% of the total value of banknotes in circulation is accounted for by banknotes with a face value of 1000 UAH. In the global practice of central banks, this is considered one of the signals that the time has come to introduce a banknote of a higher denomination.