The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Union (EU) are expanding financing programs for Ukrainian businesses that could provide up to \u20ac2 billion in lending, along with hundreds of millions of euros in additional guarantees and grants to support companies during the war, according to a statement released by the financial institution.<\/p>\n
The EBRD and the EU announced an expansion of support programs for Ukrainian small, medium-sized, and large enterprises, as well as startups, as part of broader efforts to sustain the economy during wartime.<\/p>\n
Under the expansion of existing mechanisms, the EU will provide approximately \u20ac315 million in additional support, including \u20ac200 million in guarantees, \u20ac105 million in grants, and \u20ac10 million in technical assistance. The funding is intended to ensure the continued availability of business financing through the EBRD\u2019s partner financial institutions.<\/p>\n
The initiative is expected to mobilize up to \u20ac2 billion in new lending for Ukrainian companies, support at least 3,000 businesses, and help preserve approximately 180,000 jobs.<\/p>\n
Companies will also be eligible for EU-funded investment incentives in the form of grants covering 10% to 30% of the cost of critical capital investments, primarily in highly efficient and environmentally sustainable technologies.<\/p>\n
At least 50% of grant incentives will be directed toward priority SME categories, including businesses with assets damaged or destroyed by the war, companies operating in frontline regions, veteran-owned enterprises, businesses supporting the reintegration of internally displaced persons and people with disabilities, microenterprises, startups, small farms, and companies led by women and young entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n
Separately, the EBRD and the EU have launched a new initiative called the Ukraine SME Recovery Programme, aimed at supporting the recovery of small and medium-sized businesses, mid-sized companies, and startups.<\/p>\n
The program includes \u20ac41 million in guarantees and approximately \u20ac5 million in technical assistance through the Ukraine Investment Framework.<\/p>\n
The initiative is expected to mobilize at least \u20ac135 million in financing, support a minimum of 15 investment projects, and assist up to 34 startups through advisory and acceleration programs.<\/p>\n
The first component will be implemented through the EBRD\u2019s Risk Sharing Framework (RSF) in cooperation with partner banks. EU guarantees will be used to cover first-loss risks for both the EBRD and participating banks on an equal basis.<\/p>\n
This approach is expected to expand Ukrainian companies\u2019 access to long-term financing, particularly for rebuilding and modernizing production facilities.<\/p>\n
The second component focuses on expanding the EBRD\u2019s Star Venture program, which supports high-potential startups and promotes the development of Ukraine\u2019s innovation ecosystem.<\/p>\n
The funding is designed to help early-stage companies cover operational expenses, market development costs, and improve their readiness to attract commercial investment.<\/p>\n
The statement emphasized that the EBRD remains the largest institutional investor in Ukraine and has significantly increased its support for critical infrastructure, the energy sector, and private businesses since 2022.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":151722,"menu_order":0,"template":"","newscat":[9],"newstag":[],"issues":[],"class_list":["post-151721","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","newscat-novosti"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/151721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/151722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=151721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"newscat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newscat?post=151721"},{"taxonomy":"newstag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newstag?post=151721"},{"taxonomy":"issues","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ldaily.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issues?post=151721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}