On June 6, 2024, the Financial Stability Council approved the Lending Development Strategy, the key objectives of which are to provide financial resources for the restoration of the energy infrastructure and stimulate the credit demand of defense enterprises, the processing and agricultural industries, as well as businesses in de-occupied territories or those close to the front, the press release from the Ministry of Economy reads.

Council members agreed that lending conditions for business and the public are improving, including the level of interest rates on loans, but demand for them is segmented, and for a number of industries and regions there are powerful war risks that make it difficult to access the necessary financial resources.

“The implementation of the strategy’s measures will take place in two areas: intensifying lending in priority areas under martial law and developing the legislative framework to further stimulate market lending,” explains the department’s press service.

In turn, the National Bank approved transitional requirements for banks for the gradual introduction of a new capital structure and requirements for its adequacy.

As the Ministry of Finance indicated, the implementation of the above-mentioned strategy will contribute to expanding access to credit resources, developing entrepreneurship, attracting investment, creating new jobs, as well as the return of Ukrainians from abroad.

During the meeting, members of the Financial Stability Council reviewed the systemic risks of the financial sector, because of which they noted the preservation of macro-stability and the continuation of economic recovery, thanks to the “coordinated efforts of the National Ban, the government, and international financial support.”

Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine Andriy Pyshnyy in a column for the Ekonomichna Pravda publication indicated that the main objectives of the strategy are to support the financial stability of defense enterprises and their ability to invest in modern technologies and the development of production capacities, adherence to the principles of responsible lending, and the presence of clear credit procedures and minimizing legal risks, reducing credit risks through wider access to information from government resources for lenders and applying additional requirements for the assessment of borrowers, reducing the share of non-performing loans, introducing the principles of “green” financing with exceptions to support lending to the military-industrial complex and the energy sector.