The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the US Government’s development finance institution, has committed financing support to two projects in Ukraine that will promote lending to small and medium businesses that are critical to economic stability and growth.
- OPIC committed $10 million to Ukraine’s Agroprosperis Bank (AP Bank) to support lending to small and medium enterprise (SME) farmers in Ukraine, who are a critical source of food production in the country, but often struggle to access financing to purchase seeds, spare parts and fuel for the machinery that is used in planting and harvesting.
- OPIC is also supporting $7.8 million in financing to Ukraine’s Bank Vostok to help expand the bank’s SME lending portfolio to reach underserved populations such as businesses located in rural areas.
OPIC’s commitment to supporting private sector development in Ukraine has resulted in quadrupling OPIC’s investment portfolio there since 2014, across sectors ranging from financial services to agriculture and energy.
This week, OPIC President and Chief Executive Officer Ray W. Washburne is visiting Ukraine, his first official visit with OPIC, as part of an official delegation led by US Deputy Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette. Ukraine is a foreign policy priority for the US and OPIC continues to work on projects that will support further private sector-led development in the country.
“OPIC plays an important role promoting stability in Ukraine through projects that directly impact the country’s small and medium sized businesses,” said Mr. Washburne. “Limited access to financing is one of the main challenges these businesses face and OPIC financing will help local banks expand lending to the small businesses that create jobs and contribute to economic growth.”
OPIC’s current investment portfolio in Ukraine totals $522 million across 18 projects.
