In 2025, JSC OTP BANK made charitable transfers for almost UAH 67 million. The bank systematically interacts with charitable organizations that implement socially significant programs and help Ukrainians, as well as implements important initiatives within its own OTP Bank Helps Ukraine project.
“The purpose of OTP Bank’s charitable activities is to create a real and tangible impact on the lives of as many people as possible. We are talking about helping children, supporting the healthcare sector, and providing Ukrainian defenders with life-saving elements. We deliberately combine large-scale programs that we consistently implement year after year with targeted initiatives that respond to specific human needs. It is important that every hryvnia allocated to charity works to support, restore and ensure a decent future for citizens today and in the long term,” said Lesia Syrota, team leader of the OTP Bank Helps Ukraine charity project, Director of Retail Sales and Network Management at OTP Bank.
Among the priority long-term projects for OTP BANK is the support of the Superhumans Center, where more than 1.5 thousand patients have received help since April 2023, more than 1.3 thousand prostheses have been made and more than 1 thousand operations have been performed. In December 2025, the financial institution launched a Christmas charity auction. The bank will double the funds raised and use them for the treatment and rehabilitation of Ukrainians who were injured or lost limbs in the war. In total, during the period of cooperation, the prosthetics and rehabilitation center has received more than UAH 40 million of charitable support from OTP BANK.
Another program that has become a sustainable tradition is OTP Kids Camp, which OTP Bank organizes jointly with the Charity Foundation Blagomay, OTP Bank in Hungary and JSC Ukrzaliznytsia to give Ukrainian children the opportunity to relax and recover. The first camp took place in Hungary in 2023 and treated 150 children from the frontline regions. In 2024, 117 children had a summer camp in Budapest. This year, 160 children attended the OTP Kids Camp in the summer, and in the fall, the camp opened its doors to 40 more Ukrainian children for the first time.
The OTP Bank Helps Ukraine community also consistently implements theFirst Embroidered Shirtsinitiative. In two years, 854 children received their first ever embroidered shirt on the occasion of the Vyshyvanka Day.
OTP BANK actively and systematically supports DrukArmy: the bank’s employees purchased 16 3D printers, which are used to print training models and equipment for the defenders. Every month, the team donates for plastic and periodically holds charity events, involving customers in raising funds for raw materials. The total amount of donations has already exceeded UAH 16 million.
Together with the Serhiy Prytula Charitable Foundation, the financial institution held a charity auction “Free Sky at 34” in the OTP Bank UA mobile application. The UAH 1.85 million raised was used to strengthen Ukraine’s defense capabilities.
Thanks to the benefactors of the OTP Bank Helps Ukraine program, UAH 250 thousand was allocated for repairs in the dormitory of the Udaytsia Educational and Rehabilitation Center, where 65 children live. On the eve of the New Year holidays, OTP BANK employees became assistants of St. Nicholas and made the dreams of the children of this institution and Chernihiv Center for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation come true. Warm clothes, shoes, rugs, pillows, power banks, construction sets, dolls, headphones, sweets and other gifts worth more than UAH 750 thousand were purchased by the bank’s employees at their own expense and delivered to the children. The bank’s team also provided sweet gifts for the Christmas and New Year holidays to the residents of the Nizhyn orphanage (Chernihiv region), and the institution itself received the necessary hygiene products that its children need on a daily basis. The total cost of the charity initiative was UAH 204 thousand.
That year, within the framework of OTP Bank Helps Ukraine, the bank raised and allocated UAH 250 thousand for medical equipment for the Rehabilitation and Palliative Care Center at the Vinnytsia Regional Specialized Children’s Home, UAH 156 thousand for the equipment of a sports hall. UAH 156 thousand to equip a sports ground in the orphanage in Stryzhavka (Vinnytsia region); UAH 143 thousand to install new windows in the medical center of Mostyshche special school (Kyiv region); UAH 84 thousand to improve the living conditions of the pupils of the educational and rehabilitation center “Nadiya” (Cherkasy region). All charitable initiatives can be found at the link.
OTP Leasing LLC, a member of OTP Group in Ukraine, donated more than UAH 5.9 million to charity in 2025.
Since February 2022, the total contribution of OTP Group in Ukraine to help the state and Ukrainians has exceeded UAH 282 million.
Bitcoin accelerated its growth in mid-January and is trading at around $97,024, updating the local highs of recent weeks. Ethereum is holding steady at $3,366.
According to CoinMarketCap, the global capitalisation of the crypto market is around $3.28 trillion, with Bitcoin accounting for around 59%, indicating a concentration of demand in the largest asset, while altcoins are growing less evenly.
The main driver in January is the return of institutional interest through ETFs. US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded strong inflows, including about $843.6 million on 14 January, with total inflows measured in billions of dollars over several days.
The second factor is the US macroeconomy. The market reacted to inflation data and rate expectations, which directly affect risk appetite and the cost of capital. After the publication of the December CPI, Bitcoin accelerated at certain moments, and volatility in crypto intensified.
January news markers that may affect the exchange rate.
Regulation in the US. On 13 January, senators introduced a bill on rules for the crypto market, including the division of powers between the SEC and CFTC and the approach to stablecoins. On 15 January, discussions in the Senate Banking Committee were postponed after public criticism from Coinbase. This is a typical trigger for the market: clear rules are a plus for valuations, while delays and disputes are a cause for nervousness.
Stablecoins and payments. Visa is publicly increasing its focus on stablecoin payments: the company estimates the current annual run rate of such payments at approximately $4.5 billion, with an estimated $270 billion in stablecoins in circulation. Any news about stablecoin regulation and the banking lobby in the US can quickly affect sentiment in crypto.
Risk of incidents and hacks. In January, the market already received a reminder of technological risks: some tokens fell to almost zero after exploits (an example is the incident surrounding Truebit). Such events usually hit the ‘second tier’ and increase demand for quality (BTC, large protocols).
The key event of the month is the FOMC meeting on 27-28 January 2026 and the subsequent press conference. The Fed’s rhetoric on rates and inflation remains one of the strongest external factors for crypto at the beginning of the year.
Pig iron smelting at the ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih plant increased by 16.9% in 2025, reaching 2 million 534.6 thousand tonnes. This is the largest increase among all the main types of products manufactured by the company.
Despite this, CEO Mauro Longobardo noted that the plan was to operate two blast furnaces continuously, but this was not possible due to the war. Production remains adaptive and depends on energy supplies and the market situation.
The key objective of the company remains to preserve production capacity and jobs for the future reconstruction of the country.
ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih is the largest producer of rolled steel in Ukraine. It specialises in the production of long products, in particular, rebar and wire rod. The company has a full production cycle, with production capacity designed for an annual output of over 6 million tonnes of steel, more than 5 million tonnes of rolled products and over 5.5 million tonnes of pig iron.
ArcelorMittal owns Ukraine’s largest mining and metallurgical complex, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, and a number of small companies, including ArcelorMittal Beryslav.
Cargo turnover at Ukrainian seaports reached 82.2 million tonnes in 2025, which was 95.36% of the plan, while the forecast cargo turnover (81.769 million tonnes) was fulfilled by 100.5%, according to the press service of the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority (USPA)
‘Despite unprecedented security pressure, shelling of port infrastructure and mass air raid alerts, the planned cargo turnover targets for the year were exceeded by more than 95% of the forecast, which was set at 86.2 million tonnes for 2025,’ the agency wrote on Telegram.
The USPA noted that agricultural products remained the key basis for cargo turnover in 2025, accounting for 44.2 million tonnes, or 53.7% of the total volume. Container transport showed significant growth: 215,748 TEU were handled during the year, compared to 129,902 TEU a year earlier.
The USPA identified mass air raid alerts and strikes on port infrastructure as a particular challenge in 2025. In the Odesa region alone, air raid alerts were sounded more than 800 times, and the total downtime amounted to more than one month — minus one month of port operations.
‘Despite this, Ukrainian products were exported to 55 countries around the world,’ the USPA emphasised, thanking the Defence Forces, port workers, stevedoring companies and industry experts for their professionalism and endurance, as well as the Ukrainian Navy for ensuring the safety of shipping and the functioning of maritime corridors.
Afina Group LLC, whose beneficiaries are Ruslan Shostak and Valery Kiptik, co-owners of the EVA and Varus chains, has officially completed the process of acquiring ownership of PJSC Vinnitsabythim, according to the company’s press service.
After fulfilling the necessary legal conditions of the deal, the enterprise became the property of the company. This completes the lengthy privatisation process of one of the key assets of Ukrainian industry in the field of household chemicals.
As reported, in August 2025, Afina Group won an online auction for the privatisation of the nationalised PJSC Vinnitsabythim, offering UAH 608.136 million against the initial price of UAH 301.406 million.
Afina Group noted that the acquisition of ownership rights to Vinnitsabytkhim is part of a long-term strategy for the development of Ukrainian production. The company sees the enterprise as a key platform for further expanding its portfolio of own brands, launching new products and introducing modern quality standards that meet the requirements of national and international markets.
A separate emphasis in the further development of the plant will be placed on preserving and gradually increasing the number of jobs in the region. The implementation of investment plans provides for the expansion of production capacities, which will create additional opportunities for employment and professional development of specialists.
Afina Group considers the acquisition of PJSC Vinnitsabythim to be a responsible investment step and a contribution to strengthening Ukrainian industry, supporting the country’s economic stability and developing national brands during wartime.
Earlier it was reported that on 31 July 2024, the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) upheld the Ministry of Justice’s claim to apply sanctions to the Russian company Nevskaya Kosmetika in the form of a 100% stake in the Ukrainian company Vinnytsia Bytkhim being transferred to the state.
In July 2022, the seized assets of PJSC Vinnitsabytkhim were transferred to the National Agency for the Identification, Search and Management of Assets Derived from Corruption and Other Crimes (ARMA).
Following a competitive selection process in July 2023, Kraitex-Service LLC, part of the Afina Group, was granted the right to resume operations and become the asset manager. Kraitex-Service later announced that it would invest UAH 400 million in launching production at Vinnitsabytkhim.
ARMA ceased management of the asset in April 2025 and transferred it to the State Property Fund of Ukraine for further implementation. According to the National Agency, during the period of management of the seized asset, almost UAH 100 million was transferred to the state budget.
While managing the plant, Afina Group launched production of its own brands, Vuhastyk and Sarmix, at its facilities.
PJSC Vinnitsabytkhim is one of the oldest manufacturers of household chemicals in Ukraine with a long history and significant industrial potential. The company has a tower technology for the production of washing powders, which is unique for the Ukrainian market, a modern laboratory base and a developed production and warehouse infrastructure. The plant is of strategic importance for the household chemicals industry and plays an important role in the industrial development of the region.
Afina Group has been operating in the Ukrainian market for over 20 years and is one of the leading operators in the fields of distribution, logistics and the creation of its own brands. The most famous brands of Afina Group are TM Vuhastyk, TM SARMIX, and TM iFresh. The company serves key national and local retail chains through its own extensive network of branches and distribution logistics centres. Its coverage area includes the whole of Ukraine.
According to data from YouControl, in the first three quarters of 2025, Afina Group LLC increased its revenue by 10.7% to UAH 2 billion 286.125 million, with a net loss of UAH 90.576 million compared to a net profit of UAH 68.525 million in the third quarter of 2024.
Smartphone shipments in the world by the end of 2025 increased by 1.9% to 1.26 billion units, according to preliminary calculations of International Data Corporation (IDC).
Including the October-December period, they grew by 2.3% relative to the same period in 2024 to reach 336.3 million units.
“Despite the memory chip shortage crisis, the market was supported in the fourth quarter by solid growth in premium device sales, strong momentum in foldable smartphones, and an uptick in demand from consumers in anticipation of price increases,” IDC said in a statement.
“Despite a challenging year marked by volatile import duties, supply chain disruptions, and persistent macroeconomic challenges in several regions, the global smartphone market showed remarkable resilience, ending 2025 with robust growth of 1.9%,” said IDC Senior Research Director Nabila Popal.
“The main growth drivers were premium manufacturers Apple Inc. and Samsung, which posted the highest growth rates among the top five, at 6.3 percent and 7.9 percent, respectively.” Apple maintained its leadership for the third consecutive year with record shipments and a strong recovery in China, fueled by the success of the iPhone 17 series,” Popal noted.
“Notably, the combined share of Apple and Samsung grew by two percentage points to 39% from 37% in the previous year, underscoring the accelerating trend towards premiumization as consumers increasingly gravitate towards higher-end devices,” the expert added.
