The Deposit Guarantee Fund of Individuals (DGF) aims to increase the guaranteed compensation amount from the current UAH 600,000 to the European standard of EUR 100,000 after the end of martial law, when the temporary full deposit guarantee expires. The Fund also plans to extend the deposit guarantee system to include legal entities.

"My personal goal upon joining the Fund was to reform the deposit guarantee system, aligning it with European standards and conditions. That is why we are aiming for EUR 100,000 instead of UAH 600,000," said DGF Managing Director Olha Bilai in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

She emphasized that moving toward European standards involves more than just increasing the guarantee to EUR 100,000 – it also includes extending deposit guarantees to legal entities. This change would protect businesses that currently must wait in line for compensation when a bank is liquidated.

"Legal entities hold approximately the same amount of funds in the banking system as individuals. As of the end of February, corporate deposits stood at UAH 1.4 trillion, while individual deposits totaled UAH 1.23 trillion, according to the National Bank of Ukraine. We continuously analyze and calculate the steps and timelines needed to achieve this goal," Bilai said.

She noted that this initiative depends on the financial stability of the Fund, as well as the overall state of the banking system and the country.

"We are considering several approaches to implementing guarantees for legal entities and increasing the guaranteed amount. These include a phased increase in the guarantee amount, a limited initial coverage for specific legal entities with gradual expansion, or the accumulation of sufficient resources before full implementation," the managing director explained.

She added that the Fund must adopt a balanced approach to implementation to avoid putting excessive pressure on the banking system while maintaining financial stability.

Before the war, when the guarantee limit was lower, many depositors tried to stay within the UAH 200,000 threshold per deposit, as confirmed by National Bank statistics. However, Bilai noted that such behavior is no longer prevalent.

"The full deposit guarantee has become ingrained in depositor behavior. Since the introduction of martial law, we have observed an overall increase in total bank deposits, including those exceeding UAH 600,000. Therefore, transitioning to EUR 100,000 should happen as quickly as possible," she said.

According to Bilai, the current state of the banking system presents a good opportunity to increase the post-war guaranteed compensation amount and extend coverage to legal entities. Stricter supervision by the National Bank and improved bank assets reduce the likelihood of large-scale payouts.