Minister of Finance Sergii Marchenko Signed the Memorandum of Understanding between Ukraine and the United Kingdom to Expand Trade and Economic Cooperation between Two Countries

On October 8, within the visit of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy to London, Minister of Finance Sergii Marchenko signed Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Ukraine and Her Britannic Majesty’s Secretary of State, acting through the Export Credits Guarantee Department, which is operating as UK Export Finance.

The Memorandum is aimed at creating a basis for strengthening and expanding trade and economic cooperation between Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

In particular, it is planned to provide financial support for the implementation of investment projects in high priority areas for Ukraine: security and defense, agriculture, infrastructure, energy and healthcare totaling up to GBP 2.5 billion.

Financial assistance will be provided through the UK Export Finance (UKEF). 

"The decision to bring UK Export Finance to the Ukrainian market and sign this Memorandum is a sign of trust and support from the United Kingdom for the transformational changes that are currently taking place in Ukraine. I am convinced that this will open new opportunities for partnership between the economies of our countries, in particular in the fields of defense and security, renewable strength sources and transport infrastructure," - noted Minister of Finance Sergii Marchenko.

UKEF supports the export of all types of goods and services from the UK and can help Ukrainian companies successfully fulfill an export contract. 

A project can be eligible for UKEF financing if the share of British goods or services is at least 20%, and this is the lowest similar requirement among other export credit agencies in the West.

Another important aspect is the fact that assistance will be available for both sovereign projects and the private sector.

Financing is usually structured as a single loan per contract, which allows the financing conditions to be better adapted to the specific requirements of the contract. It also can be structured in the form of a "credit line" which allows financing individual contracts.