PrivatBank CEO Reveals How Ukraine Can Fund $600B Reconstruction | Exclusive Interview

PrivatBank CEO Mikael Björknert says US and international investors have shifted their focus from wartime curiosity to reconstruction financing, with Ukraine’s rebuild estimated at $600 billion. The bank is pushing its EBRD, EIB, and IFC partners to expand risk-sharing limits, raise loan ceilings to $50 million, and help develop a war insurance market to unlock stalled private investment.

How will Ukraine finance reconstruction while the war continues?

In this exclusive interview, PrivatBank CEO Mikael Björknert explains how Ukrainian banks, international lenders, and private investors could help rebuild a country facing more than $600 billion in recovery needs.

Björknert also shares what international stakeholders are asking about Ukraine at the IMF Spring Meetings in Washington, speaking with Kyiv Post on the sidelines of the event in Washington, D.C. in the IMF headquarters.

Key topics discussed:

  • How Ukraine can fund post-war reconstruction
  • Why PrivatBank wants bigger EBRD, IFC & EIB guarantees
  • War risk insurance and foreign investor hesitation
  • Why Ukrainian lending surged despite high interest rates
  • Fuel price shocks, inflation, and pressure on businesses
  • Why global investors still believe in Ukraine