Demand for loans is recovering in Ukraine.

In the third quarter, banks recorded increased demand for commercial and individual hryvnia loans, the NBU reports. Most banks expect further commercial and retail loan portfolio growth in the next 12 months.

The largest increase in demand in the corporate segment is observed from large enterprises in the retail industry – for mortgages (growth for four quarters in a row). Approved applications for business loans increased in the third quarter, primarily for loans to small and medium enterprises for short-term and foreign currency loans. Moving forward, approved applications for retail loans will continue to grow, primarily for consumer loans.

Business credit standards were unchanged in the third quarter for the first time since the start of the war after a long period of tightening. Credit standards for households eased for the third quarter in a row. Banks plan to reduce consumer loan standards further while keeping them unchanged for mortgages.