Sayenko Kharenko advises EBRD on the first synthetic UAH loan facility to a Ukrainian leasing company

Sayenko Kharenko acted as Ukrainian legal counsel to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on providing a four-year UAH-denominated loan equivalent to EUR 10 million to LLC OTP Leasing. This is the first synthetic local currency loan to a Ukrainian leasing company to finance lease contracts to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across the country. The loan will address foreign exchange risks of local borrowers and will enable the company to diversify its customer base.

Furthermore, the transaction contemplates granting of up to EUR 1 million funding for SMEs under EU4Business initiative supported by European Union (EU) and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) between Ukraine and the EU. The grants will be provided as investment incentives aiming to improve technology and production processes of SMEs in line with EU standards.

EBRD is the largest international financial investor in Ukraine. To date, the bank has made a cumulative commitment of almost EUR 12.1 billion across some 400 projects since the start of its operations in the country in 1993. OTP Leasing has been present on Ukrainian market for 10 years and is a part of OTP Group, a European financial group.

Igor Lozenko and Nazar Chernyavsky led Sayenko Kharenko’s team working on the transaction, which included junior associates Vira Pankiv, Vladyslava Mitsai and Oleksandra Maksymenko.