Ukraine's central bank on Wednesday introduced long-term refinancing loans for up to five years for banks, aiming to support their liquidity amid the market turbulence from the coronavirus epidemic.
The move would help maintain financial stability in the country and stimulate economic growth, the bank said in a statement, Reuters reported.
It said it would use long-term liquidity assistance in addition to short-term refinancing means.
As UNIAN reported earlier, the share of non-performing loans (NPLs) in Ukraine's banking system in 2019 is below 50% for the first time in three years, having shrunk to 48.4% as of January 1, 2020.
The main improvement factors were the following: an increase in retail lending (by about 30% year-over-year); major credit portfolio restructuring of two state-owned banks of over UAH 30 billion (US$1.2 billion); major efforts by banks with foreign capital to optimize portfolios by selling and writing down NPLs on the account of loss allowance; and appreciation of the hryvnia, Ukraine's national currency.
