Banks waged a “battle for customers”: lending grew by a third despite the war
17 June 15:11
Despite the ongoing hostilities, Ukrainian banks are demonstrating record lending rates, actively competing for borrowers and improving loan terms – the National Bank of Ukraine has released its Financial Stability Report, which shows a real boom in lending in the Ukrainian economy. In April 2025, the annual growth rate of loans to households reached 34% and 29% for businesses, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
Banks have organized a “race for quality”
According to the NBU, financial institutions are increasingly competing for quality borrowers, which is manifested in:
- improving the quality of banking services;
- maintaining moderate interest rates;
- improving lending conditions.
“Enterprises have maintained good financial performance and creditworthiness, and thus remain desirable customers for banks,”
– the report says.
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Mortgages break records of state support
The situation in the mortgage segment is particularly interesting: more than 95% of mortgage loans are provided with government support. This demonstrates the large-scale role of the state in stimulating housing lending even in times of war.
At the same time, the NBU plans to reduce the focus of state support for business lending – the share of subsidized loans is already less than a third of the total.
What’s next?
The regulator predicts that as inflationary pressures ease, market rates will go down, which may increase pressure on banks’ profitability. Therefore, financial institutions are advised to develop lending more actively and plan their asset structure with these risks in mind.
Despite the difficult wartime conditions, the Ukrainian banking sector demonstrates resilience and readiness to increase lending to the economy, which is a positive signal for the country’s recovery, the NBU said.
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