Kernel, one of Ukraine’s largest agro-industrial groups, a leading grain exporter from Ukraine, and a global leader in the production and export of sunflower oil, has received Ukraine’s first commodity agricultural note, the agro-holding’s press service reported on its website.
According to the report, the document was registered in the Register of Agricultural Notes with the support of PJSC National Depository of Ukraine (NDU), the official administrator of the system.
The commodity agricultural note was deposited with the Central Securities Depository, which ensures its legal status and high liquidity. Thanks to this, the instrument can be used as a reliable collateral in financial transactions and as an alternative to traditional agricultural financing mechanisms, the agricultural holding explained.
“We see the future in the digitization and standardization of processes. The use of agricultural notes is not just a tool, but a foundation for transparent and effective interaction between participants in the agricultural market. We are confident that this decision will allow us to flexibly and quickly support our partners, especially in today’s difficult market conditions,” emphasized Alexander Golovin, Commercial Director for Ukraine at Kernel.
The agricultural note was issued with the support of the IFC project “Developing Ukraine’s Agricultural Sector Access to Capital Markets,” which is being implemented in partnership with the Swiss Confederation. The initiative aims to expand access to finance for agricultural producers by strengthening the agricultural receipt instrument and preparing agricultural notes as a fully-fledged asset class for securitization.
“We sincerely believe that agricultural notes will become one of the key lending instruments for the agricultural sector, especially for covering working capital needs and attracting financing from capital markets,” said IFC Project Manager Kirill Mukhomedzyanov.
“An instrument such as a commodity agricultural note provides high legal transparency and reduces the cost of financing for agricultural producers, which is particularly valuable for small and medium-sized farmers with limited access to investment. Accordingly, in the long term, the use of notes will help boost investor and bank confidence in the sector and allow for free market circulation, opening up new sources of capital,” emphasized Kernel’s head of agribusiness finance, Mykhailo Golubakha.
The agricultural holding emphasized that the launch of agricultural notes is a manifestation of the company’s strategic course towards the digitalization of business processes.
Before the war, Kernel was the world’s leading producer of sunflower oil (about 7% of global production) and its exporter (about 12%). It is one of the largest producers and sellers of bottled oil in Ukraine. In addition, it is engaged in the cultivation and sale of agricultural products.
Ukraine’s second-largest mobile operator, Vodafone Ukraine (VFU), has announced a proposal to buy back its Eurobonds worth $1.11 million in connection with the company’s first monthly dividend payment to shareholder Telco Investments B.V. in the amount of UAH 46.092 million on May 14 this year.
As the company explained in a stock exchange announcement on Friday, according to changes made by the National Bank of Ukraine on December 21, 2024, it is now permitted to pay dividends abroad on a monthly basis in an amount not exceeding EUR 1 million per month.
Accordingly, on April 24, 2025, VFU announced the payment of dividends to its shareholder in the amount of UAH 660.245 million ($15.9 million at the exchange rate specified in the announcement) for 2024 and intends to pay them in separate monthly dividend payments. Each such monthly dividend is expected to amount to the equivalent of EUR1 million in hryvnia.
The company emphasized that, in accordance with the terms of the bond issue, in such a case it must offer all bondholders the opportunity to apply for the sale of their bonds for an amount equal to the amount of dividends paid outside Ukraine.
According to the announced terms, the bonds will be redeemed at 99% of their face value.
VFU recalled that a total of $300 million worth of bonds maturing in February 2027 with a nominal interest rate of 9.625% per annum were issued, of which the company currently holds $0.5 million worth of bonds.
Applications for participation in the buyback will be accepted until June 6 inclusive.
As reported, VFU increased its revenue by 13.1% to UAH 24.44 billion in 2024, while reducing its net profit by 30.1% to UAH 3.54 billion.
In January-March 2025, revenue grew by 14% compared to the same period in 2024, to UAH 6.59 billion, while net profit fell by 24% to UAH 697 million.
In January-April 2025, DTEK Energy allocated approximately UAH 1.6 billion to repair and restore thermal power plants damaged by massive enemy shelling.
According to a press release from the energy holding company, the repair campaign is currently continuing without interruption, as the scale of the damage remains critical. A year ago, 90% of DTEK Energy’s generating capacity was destroyed or seriously damaged by attacks. On the eve of last winter, energy companies managed to restore more than half of it, but new strikes in November-December again caused serious damage.
“Our main task is not to stop. We are working every day on restoration to ensure the stable operation of the power system in the summer, during peak loads, and to confidently enter the next heating season,” said DTEK Energy CEO Alexander Fomenko.
In 2024, DTEK invested UAH 3.6 billion in the restoration of thermal power plants and another UAH 7.5 billion in the development of domestic coal mining.
Over the past year, Russia has carried out 13 massive attacks on Ukraine’s energy sector, dealing a serious blow to DTEK Energy’s thermal power plants, among others. In total, since the start of the full-scale invasion, the company’s thermal power plants have been attacked by the enemy 205 times. Fifty-six power plant workers were wounded in the attacks and four were killed.
DTEK Energy provides a closed cycle of electricity production from coal. As of January 2022, the company’s installed thermal generation capacity was 13.3 GW. A complete production cycle has been established in coal mining: coal extraction and enrichment, machine building, and maintenance of mining equipment.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a decree on the decision of the National Security and Defense Council to impose sanctions on nine legal entities and three individuals, all citizens of the Russian Federation, associated with the Pin-Up casino.
The corresponding decree No. 344/2025 was published on the president’s website.
According to the appendix to the decree, sanctions have been imposed on three individuals who are citizens of the Russian Federation: Dmitry Punin, Ivan Bannikov, and Alexander Matyasov.
Sanctions have also been imposed on nine legal entities, three of which are registered in Ukraine: Ukr Game Technology LLC, Tranitadevelopment LLC, and Turbo.Yu LLC.
In January-April 2025, nickel imports to Ukraine decreased by 40.9% to $5.01 million. Exports amounted to $374,000, compared to $217,000 in the same period of 2024. In April, imports amounted to $1.11 million, while exports amounted to $13,000.
Nickel is used in the production of stainless steel and for nickel plating. Nickel is also used in the production of batteries, in powder metallurgy, and in chemical reagents.
Imports, nickel
International rating agency Fitch Ratings predicts that Ukraine’s current account deficit will increase this year to 14.5% of GDP from 7.2% of GDP in 2024 and 5.3% in 2023, reflecting high gas and steel imports and lower remittances from Ukrainian refugees, as well as high defense imports and exports of goods, which are 38% below pre-war levels.
Inflation is forecast to average 12.3% in 2025, before slowing to 6.5% in 2026 as base effects and monetary policy transmission gain traction.
Fitch also lowered its GDP growth forecast for Ukraine for 2025 from 2.9% to 2.5% due to challenges related to ongoing labor market tensions, damage caused by attacks on gas infrastructure, and the closure of Pokrovskugol due to hostilities.
