Ощадбанк приєднався до міжнародної коаліції для підтримки відбудови України на Ukraine Recovery Conference

Oschadbank has become a partner of the side event ‘Rebuilding Ukraine Together: Partnerships, Capital, and Women’s Economic Leadership’, held on the eve of the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2026 in Gdańsk.

The event featured the signing of the Declaration of Principles by the Resilient Communities Solidarity Coalition (RCSC) — an international coalition dedicated to supporting Ukraine’s recovery through partnerships between communities, businesses and financial institutions.

Participants in the discussion explored the mechanisms for attracting private capital to the country’s recovery, as well as the role of international partnerships in financing community development projects and women’s entrepreneurship.

When opening the event, Alona Shkrum, Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine, emphasized that Ukraine’s rebuild needs are already estimated at USD 588 billion. According to international financial institutions, more than a half of this amount could be provided by the private sector, given the establishment of effective mechanisms for financing, risk insurance and investment attraction.

“Our objective lies in ensuring the establishment of a transparent and straightforward reconstruction system that will help communities attract investment and implement development projects.  The private sector can cover more than a half of the recovery needs. The challenge we face is that we have to operate during a war and create instruments never used before in such circumstances. At the same time, Ukrainian communities and businesses have already demonstrated their unique resilience,” — emphasized Alona Shkrum.

The primary focus of the discussion centered on exploring the ways in which the banks and international financial institutions can help communities and businesses to implement reconstruction projects already today.

During the first panel, Volodymyr Lavrenchuk, the Chairman of the Supervisory Council of Oschadbank presented his views, addressing the financing of reconstruction and economic resilience, 

“In the fourth year of the war, resilience is no longer just a reaction to danger. It is a business strategy. It stimulates innovation and cooperation, as well as creating new opportunities for development even in the most challenging conditions,” — remarked Volodymyr Lavrenchuk.

He stressed the fact that the Ukrainian banking sector has become one of the key pillars of the country’s economic resilience. Over the course of four years of full-scale war, Oschadbank has financed approximately 25,000 projects totaling EUR 1.5 billion, thus supporting the development of businesses, communities and critical infrastructure.

Volodymyr Lavrenchuk specifically highlighted the importance of cooperation with international financial organizations and the application of the risk-sharing mechanisms enabling banks to lend more actively to the economy despite the war.

“The credit portfolio remains of high quality. Non-performing loans account for around 2% of Oschadbank’s SME portfolio. These figures demonstrate the responsibility of Ukrainian businesses and the effectiveness of the support mechanisms established in collaboration with international partners,” — emphasized Volodymyr Lavrenchuk.

The second part of the event was devoted to the role of women in Ukraine’s economic recovery and the development of women’s entrepreneurship. Olena Kondratiuk, Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, pointed out   that the war has significantly expanded the role of women in the economy, business and high-tech sectors, with women increasingly taking on management roles and creating new opportunities for development.

“Women in Ukraine now face enormous professional transformations. This is an entirely new dimension and brings new opportunities. We are witnessing rapid development in such complex technological sectors as military technology and defence, with many women now working as executive directors in these companies. Furthermore, due to the war, many women have been forced to take over the management of family businesses and are demonstrating impressive leadership,” said Olena Kondratiuk.

Oschadbank’s experience also confirms the trend towards women strengthening their role in business. Natalia Butkova -Vitvitska, a Member of the Bank’s Management Board responsible for Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, stated that women entrepreneurs are now more often applying to Oschadbank not to overcome the crisis caused by the war, but rather to implement their investment plans.

“The key takeaway today is that women entrepreneurs coming to the bank are no longer merely surviving — they have begun to grow proactively. The demand for investment projects in particular is growing rapidly: purchasing equipment, scaling up businesses, as well as developing processing or export operations. This testifies to profound qualitative shifts in the philosophy of women’s business over the past two years,” — emphasized Natalia Butkova-Vitvitska.

These comprehensive transformations and the women’s leadership roles strengthening   are fully corroborated by practical trends in the financial sector, particularly through the launch of specialized banking support ecosystems.

Special attention the Member of Oschadbank’s Management Board drew to the unique trends in the resilience of women-led businesses during the war. One of the most positive trends has been the growth in women’s economic activity in frontline and affected regions, with women’s share of the business sector there currently standing at 40-45%. By comparison, the average figure for Ukraine as a whole stand at around 30-32%, demonstrating the extremely important role women play in sustaining economic activity, particularly in the regions most affected by the war. Moreover, Oschadbank’s experience confirms that women entrepreneurs demonstrate a good track record of repayment, carefully manage their liquidity and consistently meet their loan obligations regardless of high levels of uncertainty.

The Declaration of Principles of the Resilient Communities Solidarity Coalition, signed at the event, provides for the development of cooperation between communities, businesses, governments and financial institutions to implement reconstruction projects, strengthen infrastructure resilience, attract private investment and support women’s entrepreneurship.

Joining the coalition corresponds to Oschadbank’s strategic priorities regarding support for Ukraine’s recovery, community development and entrepreneurship. Today, the bank leads the municipal lending market with a share of around 39%, having financed over 800 community projects over the past six years, totaling approximately EUR 373 million.