Raiffeisen Bank Becomes the First in Ukraine to benefit from the First-Loss Risk Cover mechanism for Investment Projects supported by the EBRD and European Union
Raiffeisen Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development are partnering on a project-by-project risk-sharing programme to provide long-term financing to SMEs and midcaps for more complex investment projects, including those affected by wartime uncertainty. Enabled thanks to first-loss risk cover from the European Union (EU) under the Ukraine Investment Framework (UIF) as part of the Ukraine SME Recovery Programme.
The agreement signing took place during the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2026, held on 25–26 June in Gdańsk. This international conference on Ukraine’s recovery brings together representatives of governments, international financial institutions, businesses and civil society to coordinate support for Ukraine and attract investment in its recovery.
The additional first-loss risk cover mechanism is a component of the Ukraine Investment Framework and will be financed by the European Union. The initiative has a budget of EUR 41 million, available to all RSF Partner Banks in Ukraine.
The additional first-loss cover strengthens the existing project-by-project risk-sharing programme between Raiffeisen Bank and the EBRD and opens up new opportunities to support complex investment projects of medium-sized and large corporate clients.
The instrument may be applied to projects that require additional mitigation of financing risks in wartime conditions, have limited collateral coverage, or involve a lower level of the client’s own equity contribution.
“It is important for us to be the first in Ukraine to test this mechanism together with our partners at the EBRD and EU. We see that Raiffeisen Bank’s clients are ready to implement large-scale investment projects and invest in the recovery and development of the country at a new level of quality. Additional first-loss risk cover gives the bank more opportunities to finance ambitious investments by Ukrainian businesses,” said Ruslan Spivak, PhD, Director of Financial Institutions, Investment Banking and Corporate Strategy at Raiffeisen Bank.
Demand for this instrument is confirmed by the first project of Raiffeisen Bank and EBRD with additional first-loss risk cover, which becomes enable immediately after signing the framework agreement.
An investment loan of UAH 350 million (with 50/50 risk-share of Raiffeisen Bank and the EBRD) for the reconstuction and modernisation of production facilities was provided to a medium-sized corporate client — a poultry agribusiness producer from Volyn region.
