No IMF tranche should be expected before year-end – Yermak's advisor

Ukraine will not receive another tranche from its key lender the International Monetary Fund before the end of 2020, says Tympfiy Mylovanov, the country's ex-economy minister who was recently appointed an advisor to the President's Office chief Andriy Yermak.

"There will be no tranche. This is unrealistic. Physically and calendar-wise, we won't make it. There will be no tranche this year," Mylovanov told a TV panel show on ICTV.

Read alsoShmyhal meets with IMF representativeAccording to the former minister, by the end of the year, Ukraine could receive loans from other international lenders.

"This is a positive signal to the financial markets, which allows Ukraine to attract funding, at acceptable rates, for the period while negotiations with the IMF are pending," Mylovanov said.

Ukraine and IMF: Background

• On June 9, 2020, the IMF's Executive Board adopted an 18-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) for Ukraine with funding equivalent to SDR 3.6 billion (about US$5 billion) aimed at helping Ukraine overcome the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• On June 12, Ukraine received the first tranche of the IMF loan under the SBA worth $2.1 billion. The Ministry of Finance planned to receive the second tranche under the same arrangement before year-end.
• On November 17, President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke over the phone with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, saying Ukraine had fulfilled all the "structural benchmarks" for the IMF to review the existing Stand-By Arrangement.