April 4, 2025, 7:44 p.m.
(PHOTO: Focus)
Last year, Ukrainians took out more than 8.3 million microloans worth almost UAH 52 billion, up 27% year-on-year. The average loan amount was UAH 6,217, which is 26% more than in 2023.
This is evidenced by data from the Opendatabot monitoring system.
Despite the fact that the number of loan agreements remained almost unchanged compared to 2023, the total amount of loans increased significantly. In 2024, Ukrainians took out almost 8.3 million microloans, which is 27% more than in the previous year.
The number of loans disbursed was stable throughout the year, with a peak in the third quarter, when Ukrainians took out almost 729 thousand microloans per month. By the end of the year, the number of loans disbursed decreased to 691 thousand per month, but borrowers began to actively repay their debts.
Total microloan debt in Ukraine doubled in 2024. From an initial UAH 9.3 billion at the beginning of the year, the debt grew to UAH 18.47 billion by the end of the third quarter. However, in the last quarter, the amount of debt decreased by UAH 2.7 billion.
Nevertheless, the debt to microfinance institutions remained at UAH 15.77 billion at the beginning of 2025, which is 1.7 times higher than at the beginning of 2024.
Ukrainians have also accumulated more than a hundred thousand new debts, in particular due to fines for traffic violations and administrative offenses. Most debts were recorded in Odesa region, followed by Mykolaiv region, and Kherson region. Almost 75% of debts are owed by men.
Odesa region is also in the top three due to unpaid fines for traffic violations. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the number of debts for traffic fines has increased 2.4 times, and last year 735 thousand new fines were recorded, 37% of which have not yet been paid. By the end of 2024, the total number of fines amounted to 1.8 million.
Анна Бальчінос