Petro Andrushchenko,
pensioner
“I took a loan to buy an apartment. I would not take a loan again. I was a board member of the National Bank. I know what banks are all about and how onerous the conditions are for getting a loan.”
Serhiy Lisovy,
child entertainer
“I never took a loan and never wanted to. You can’t take a loan in our country because banks cheat. They offer you high interest rates either immediately or sometime later. I would take a loan only for medical surgery of a relative or to buy a house.”
Maria Tymchenko,
pensioner
“I have never taken a loan from a bank and never will. I try to live within my means. I do not really trust banks. My friends had an issue with their bank when they could not get their money out of their savings accounts. None of my acquaintances have taken a loan either.”
Yulia Hayduk,
architect
“I never took a loan and am not planning to. I do not need to – I have an apartment and a car. Besides, it is dangerous to take a loan now. No one knows what will happen to the hryvnia/dollar [exchange rate]. High interest rates also scare off. In Europe, they are 1-2 percent, and here we have some 20 percent.”
Serhiy Selyutin,
director of Zdvyzhbud construction company
“I had taken a consumer loan for personal needs. Now I need a loan for my own construction company. We are building inexpensive housing near Kyiv, using only Ukrainian materials. None of the banks will give a loan, as they ask for collateral in the form of an apartment building. But I can’t do it, as I still have to sell apartments. I am not afraid of high interest rates. I know I can pay it off.”
