Ukraine is planning changes to its preferential lending program for the defense industry: What are the plans?

The Ministry of Strategic Industry is working on expanding the preferential lending program for manufacturers of weapons and military equipment, launched in November 2024. By June 2025, the program has supported Ukrainian manufacturers with over ₴1.84B. More than half of the loans were used by manufacturers as working capital. So far, 34 out of more than 100 applications submitted have received funding.

The ministry notes that applications are received daily. They are working on legislative changes to expand opportunities for favorable financing, particularly by increasing the amount of portfolio guarantees.

The ministry is also preparing a new financial leasing mechanism that will allow companies to obtain the equipment and machinery they need at an interest rate of 5%. A leasing company will act as the lessor, and the state, through the Entrepreneurship Development Fund, will cover part of the leasing support costs.