Metinvest B.V. (Netherlands), the parent company of an international vertically integrated mining and metallurgical group, made a scheduled coupon payment on its 2027 Eurobonds.
As the group’s press service reported on Wednesday in response to a request from the “Interfax-Ukraine” agency, the payment was made on time, despite unprecedented challenges that have pushed the steel industry to the brink of survival.
“The aggressor’s blockade of Black Sea ports is limiting the volume of raw material and finished product shipments. At the same time, Ukrzaliznytsia has raised freight rates by 30%, which has increased the share of rail costs in the cost of metallurgical products by 2–3 times. And all of this is taking place against the backdrop of European restrictions, such as the introduction of CBAM and import quotas on Ukrainian steel into the EU, which have significantly reduced the group’s export opportunities,” the statement notes.
At the same time, it is noted that despite these critical obstacles, the group continues to diligently service its debt portfolio to preserve the ability to finance the restoration of its assets after the war and help the country recover more quickly from its aftermath. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Metinvest has reduced its debt burden by $1 billion, the press service’s response emphasizes.
The current coupon payment dates for the 2027 Eurobonds are September 1. “Coupon payment dates are March 1 and September 1 of each year,” states the information regarding the 2027 bonds. The coupon rate is 7.650% per annum.
Metinvest is a vertically integrated group of mining and metallurgical enterprises. Its facilities are located in Ukraine—in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Dnipropetrovsk regions—as well as in the European Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The holding company’s main shareholders are the SCM Group (71.24%) and Smart Holding (23.76%). Metinvest Holding LLC is the management company of the Metinvest Group.
The number of foreign tourists who visited Spain in July rose by 4.6% year-over-year, reaching 11.539 million people, according to the National Institute of Statistics (INE).
This is a record high for any month since records began in 1995.
The largest number of tourists last month came from the United Kingdom—nearly 2.2 million—followed by France (1.6 million) and Germany (1.2 million).
The number of visitors from other European countries rose by 10% to 1.12 million.
The Balearic Islands welcomed the most tourists (2.57 million), followed by Catalonia (2.37 million), Andalusia (1.69 million), and the Valencian Community (1.63 million).
Total spending by visitors to the country in July rose by 10.9% year-over-year, to EUR 18.22 billion, or an average of EUR 1,579 per person.
From January through July, tourist arrivals to Spain rose by 4.6%, to approximately 58.1 million people. This is also a record figure for that period. Foreign tourists spent EUR82.05 billion in the country over the seven-month period.
In January–July 2026, “Express Insurance” collected insurance premiums totaling 795.9 million UAH, an increase of 18.8% compared to the same period in 2025.
According to the insurer’s website, premiums for comprehensive auto insurance totaled 504.9 million UAH, an 11.6% increase over the first seven months of 2025, while premiums for mandatory auto liability insurance amounted to 274.1 million UAH, a 35.6% increase compared to the same period last year.
Revenue from other business lines totaled 16.9 million UAH, which is 9.7% higher than the figure for the first seven months of 2025.
The number of insurance policies issued in the first seven months of this year increased by 37% compared to the same period last year.
“This growth outpaces the growth in premiums, indicating the expansion of the company’s customer base and the acquisition of new policyholders, while simultaneously increasing revenue,” the statement said.
The company also notes that during the same period, it paid out 394.9 million UAH in insurance claims to customers, which is 48.7% more than last year.
Express Insurance was founded in 2008. It is part of the UkrAVTO group of companies. It specializes in auto insurance.
The company has over 300 insurance agents throughout Ukraine and is actively expanding its network of partner auto service centers.
comprehensive auto insurance, INSURANCE, mandatory auto liability insurance, PREMIUM, UKRAVTO
According to Fixygen, U.S. banks—which until recently were warning about the threat stablecoins pose to the deposit system—are now exploring the possibility of issuing digital dollars themselves.
JPMorgan views a stablecoin as a complement to its existing JPM Coin tokenized bank deposit system, according to the Wall Street Journal.
At the same time, more than a dozen banks are discussing a shared infrastructure for issuing digital currencies. Bank of America and Wells Fargo are among the participants.
The reason is simple: if a portion of payments and corporate settlements shifts to USDT, USDC, and other blockchain-based instruments, traditional banks risk losing a portion of their deposits and fee-based business.
Therefore, they are trying to offer their own alternative.
In fact, three competing models are currently taking shape: private stablecoins such as USDT and USDC, bank-issued stablecoins and tokenized deposits, as well as future central bank digital currencies.
The winner of this race could capture a significant share of the new market for round-the-clock international payments and settlements involving tokenized assets.
Schneider Electric reported a roughly 30% increase in net income attributable to the company’s shareholders to EUR2.49 billion for the first half of 2026, while revenue reached a record EUR21.23 billion.
A year earlier, revenue stood at EUR19.34 billion. Organic sales growth in the first half of 2026 was 14%.
Adjusted EBITA increased to EUR4.09 billion from EUR3.51 billion, representing 22% organic growth. The EBITA margin reached 19.3%.
The company’s free cash flow more than tripled, reaching approximately EUR 1.6 billion.
The second quarter was particularly strong, with Schneider Electric’s revenue reaching a record EUR 11.5 billion, an organic increase of 17%. The Energy Management segment grew by 18%, and Industrial Automation by 11%.
The company cites the data center market as one of the main drivers. Demand for electrical infrastructure for data centers is growing rapidly amid the development of artificial intelligence, which significantly increases computing density, power consumption of server racks, and demands on cooling and backup power systems.
North America posted organic growth of 23%, while China and East Asia saw growth of 20%.
Following a strong first half of the year, Schneider Electric raised its forecast for the full year 2026. The company expects organic adjusted EBITA growth of 14–19%, up from its previous forecast of 10–15%.
Organic revenue growth is projected at 10–13%.
Schneider Electric’s results reflect a broader investment cycle in energy infrastructure. AI data centers require not only servers and graphics processing units (GPUs), but also transformers, distribution equipment, UPS systems, automation systems, cooling systems, and digital energy management solutions.
Thus, energy infrastructure is gradually becoming one of the key constraints on the further scaling of AI.
For Ukraine, this trend is significant in the long-term context of rebuilding digital infrastructure and constructing new data centers. Future facilities will require significantly greater connected power capacity and more complex power distribution architectures than traditional server centers.
Schneider Electric has been operating in Ukraine for over 30 years. Globally, the company is present in more than 100 countries and has approximately 160,000 employees.
Schneider Electric published its financial results for the first half of the year on July 30, 2026.
The nationwide “Person of the Year” program is holding its 30th anniversary season, dedicated to Ukrainians whose professional and public achievements became a notable part of the country’s life in 2025.
Among the season’s laureates will be servicemen and servicewomen of the Defense Forces of Ukraine, doctors, rescuers, energy workers, agricultural workers, volunteers, entrepreneurs, diplomats, scientists, cultural figures and representatives of other fields.
As part of the anniversary season, it is also planned to honor representatives of international diplomacy and present special awards for individual achievements.
The “Person of the Year” program has existed for three decades and honors representatives of various professions and fields of activity for their contribution to the development of Ukraine and society.
The organizers note that after the beginning of the full-scale war, a special place among the laureates is occupied by people whose activities are directly connected with the defense of the country, support for the population, the functioning of critical infrastructure, the economy and Ukraine’s international representation.
“Person of the Year – 2025 is, above all, gratitude to the people who bring victory closer, strengthen the state and shape its future,” the organizers note.
Over 30 years of its existence, the program has formed a significant list of laureates from public administration, business, science, medicine, culture, sports and other fields. The anniversary season continues the tradition of public recognition of people whose work results are important for the country.
Information about the 30th season of the program was published on August 31, 2026.
Open4Business is the official partner of the nationwide “Person of the Year” program.
