Page 68 - UKRRptApr24

rating agency Moody's confirmed the long-term and short-term ratings of Privatbank, Oschadbank, Ukreximbank, Raiffeisen Bank, Taskombank, Vostok and Pivdenny banks in hryvnia and foreign currency at Caa3/NP. The agency also improved the outlook for long-term deposit ratings for all specified banks from negative to stable. "The confirmation of the long-term ratings of the banks and the change in their forecast to stable from negative reflects the stability of their financial indicators, despite the challenging operating environment in Ukraine," Moody's analysts emphasized. According to their estimates, Ukraine's economy demonstrated resilience to hostilities last year, and banks managed to stabilize asset quality, increase profitability, and accumulate sufficient capital and liquidity to withstand unexpected shocks. Rating indicators reflect Moody's expectations that the banking system will be operational in the next year and a half. And if necessary, banks will receive liquidity support from the NBU.
In January, the volume of mortgage loans issued increased by 100% to ₴1.1B. In January, Ukrainian banks issued 676 mortgage loans for a total amount of ₴1.1B, the National Bank reported. The volume of consumer mortgage loans granted decreased by 33% compared to December, while the indicator is more than 100% higher than in January 2023. In January, seven banks that issued mortgages reported that most deals were concluded on the secondary real estate market. The prime mover of the mortgage segment remains preferential lending within the eOselya program. Almost all loans issued over the last year were granted within this program’s framework. The weighted average effective interest rate on mortgage loans in January remained at 7.6% per annum for the third month in a row. Regionally, the most significant number of mortgages in January were issued in Kyiv and the Kyiv region - 300 contracts for ₴555M (50% of the total volume), as well as in the Odesa (₴71.6M), Lviv (₴59.4M) and Vinnytsia (₴53.6M) regions.
8.1.4 Bank news
Ukraine, under IMF program, by June will appoint intl consultant to prepare Ukrgasbank and Sense Bank for sale By the end of May this year, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine will appoint an internationally recognized financial consultant to prepare for sale two systemic state banks - Sense Bank (formerly Alfa-Bank) and Ukrgasbank, which account for 4% and 6% of banking system assets, respectively, says the memo of the Ukrainian authorities on the updated EFF program of the International Monetary Fund for Ukraine.
The largest state bank in Ukraine will provide guarantees to importers with Sweden’s assistance. PrivatBank will open new opportunities for Ukrainian businesses that work with companies from Sweden. From the beginning of April, clients importing goods from this country will be able to obtain from PrivatBank a letter of credit or guarantees with risk insurance by the Swedish Export Credit Agency (EKN)
One Ukrainian state bank will be reorganized into a bank for reconstruction. To accumulate and distribute resources for reconstruction, Ukraine needs to create a specialized state development bank (created by reformatting one of the five state banks), which will be removed from the system of general banking supervision and regulation, said the chairman of the financial committee of the parliament, Danylo Hetmantsev. The creation of such a bank could quicken the implementation and scaling of reconstruction
68 UKRAINE Country Report April 2024 www.intellinews.com