Ukrainians are actively taking out loans: what they spend them on and who is entitled to benefits

The growth in demand for loans in Ukraine has exceeded pre-war levels, as more citizens and businesses seek financial assistance.

As of August 2025, the total volume of loans received by citizens and businesses reached 1.23 trillion hryvnias, marking a 15% increase from last year and a 26% increase from before the war, according to information from Opendatabot.

It is noted that the largest share of loans belongs to businesses, accounting for about 74% of the total amount. However, requests from the population have increased the most, falling by 22% over the year. For example, businesses have a debt of 909.3 billion hryvnias, while citizens have 316.1 billion. For comparison, in April 2023, the amount of loans for the population was only 205.4 billion hryvnias. After the decline in the first months of the war, banks resumed lending. Now, the volume of loans to the population has increased by one and a half times, and to businesses by about 25%.

It is worth noting that deposits in Ukraine exceed the volume of loans by 2.3 times. Interestingly, more than a third of deposits are held in foreign currency, while loans are mostly issued in hryvnia—97% to the population and 72% to enterprises.

In addition, it is worth mentioning the preferential programs. Since the beginning of 2025, businesses have received 17.2 thousand loans for a total amount of over 52 billion hryvnias. The main users of such programs have been processing industry enterprises, farmers, and companies in the wholesale and retail trade.

Financial analysts note: “The increase in demand for loans confirms that the economy is gradually recovering.”

However, it is noted that the risks have not disappeared, and it is essential to invest credit resources in development rather than using them solely to cover expenses.

We recall that among the problems faced by Ukrainians is the blocking of accounts by PrivatBank, which results in many people losing access to their savings. At the same time, fraudsters continue to issue loans using other people’s passports, which causes great concern in banking circles.