EBRD Ukraine package unlocks new bank lending for MSMEs and mid-sized firms

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has signed new agreements in Ukraine that are expected to enable €845m in lending to local borrowers, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and mid-sized companies.

The package forms part of more than €500m in new EBRD commitments announced at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdańsk, bringing the bank’s wartime financing deployed in Ukraine to €10.5bn.

A central part of the package is €303m in EBRD finance across eight Ukrainian banks. The transactions are designed to mobilise credit through local financial institutions, using portfolio risk-sharing facilities and senior lending structures to expand funding to businesses operating under wartime conditions.

Facilities include a portfolio risk-sharing agreement with PrivatBank expected to enable €265m of new lending, support for Oschadbank expected to enable €150m, and further facilities with Bank Lviv, Kredobank, UKRSIBBANK, Ukrgasbank, Ukreximbank and Raiffeisen Bank Ukraine.

Several transactions are linked to the EU4Business-EBRD Credit Line, with portions of subloans directed towards long-term capital expenditure, EU standards alignment, green technologies and business resilience. Donor support includes funding from the EU, Sweden, France, the Netherlands and other contributors to the EBRD Crisis Response Special Fund.

The package also includes mechanisms to support businesses whose assets have been damaged by the war, as well as work to make war-risk coverage more affordable for EBRD-enabled lending.

Although the programme is broader than trade finance, it is directly relevant to working capital and reconstruction finance. Ukrainian businesses continue to require bank liquidity, risk-sharing support and investment finance to maintain operations, rebuild capacity and prepare for longer-term recovery.