Seventy-three Ukrainian banks collectively made a total net profit of $1.5 billion in January-November 2020, which is $552 million less than in 2019, according to the National Bank of Ukraine.
The NBU reported that 62 out of 73 operating banks in Ukraine remained profitable in 2020, while 11 banks reported losses.
State-owned PrivatBank, the largest bank in Ukraine with 23 million clients, was the most profitable — it made $886 million in net profit in 2020, which is $269 million less than in 2019 when it made $1.1 billion.
State-owned Oschadbank was the second most profitable bank in Ukraine last year with $172 million in net profit. Private bank Raiffeisen Bank Aval was third with $133 million in net profit. The First Ukrainian International Bank, which is owned by oligarch Rinat Akhmetov, took fourth place, reporting a net profit of $89 million.
The National Bank of Ukraine’s list of top five most profitable banks in Ukraine from January through November 2020. State-owned PrivatBank was the most profitable — it reported a net profit of $886 million.
State-owned Ukreximbank reported a net loss of $133 million, the largest loss in the Ukrainian banking system from January through November 2020. Prominvestbank had a net loss of $25 million, Pravex Bank — of $6 million and BTA Bank — of $3 million.
According to experts, Ukraine’s banking sector remained stable during the pandemic, proving that the country’s cleanup of the banking sector in 2014–2016 was not in vain.
After eliminating nearly two-thirds of Ukrainian banks, many of which were used for illicit schemes, the government introduced strict financial monitoring requirements, which were helpful during the pandemic, experts say.
Apart from that, Ukrainian banks invested in developing their online services to serve more customers online during the quarantine. Experts said it helped them stay competitive.
