Aequo advises EFSE on EUR 20 million synthetic facility loan to Oschadbank to support small and medium-sized businesses in Ukraine

Aequo acted as a Ukrainian legal counsel to the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE)* in connection with a EUR 20,000,000 Synthetic Loan  Facility to Oschadbank,  the second-largest state-owned bank in Ukraine.

EFSE’s funding will expand Oschadbank’s capacity to finance micro, small and medium-sized businesses whose access to finance has been especially constrained by the ongoing war, including those doing business in frontline regions, and those owned by vulnerable groups of population, such as internally displaced persons.

“This synthetic facility will help OSCHADBANK to obtain much-needed medium-term local currency funding in order to support SMEs in the challenging economic environment and bridge their liquidity shortfalls”

said Yulia Kyrpa, Executive Partner and Head of Banking and Finance at Aequo.

The transaction team comprised counsel Oleg Krainskyi, associates Dmytro Shudrenko, and Konstantyn Dovhan, and was led by the Executive Partner Yulia Kyrpa.  

Aequo team provided comprehensive legal support of the transaction, including regulatory advice, drafting and negotiating the transaction documentation and providing legal opinion for the benefit of the lender.

*EFSE, initiated by KfW with the financial support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the European Commission, aims to foster economic development and prosperity in Southeast Europe and the European Eastern Neighbourhood through sustainable financing for MSEs and private households via local partner financial institutions. Its investors include the European Union, the governments of Germany, Switzerland and Austria, and leading international financial institutions, including the likes of IFC, EBRD and EIB.