The International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group, will contribute $25 million to the Rebuild Ukraine Fund LP (REBUF) private equity fund, which was launched a year ago by leading Ukrainian investment group Dragon Capital.
According to the IFC website, its board of directors approved the project at a meeting on November 3.
The corporation specified that REBUF is focused on small and medium-sized enterprises, has a target size of $250 million, and is a universal fund that focuses on consumer goods and services, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, financial services, agriculture-related sectors, construction materials, retail, and technology.
“The fund aims to acquire controlling stakes through buyout or growth capital strategies in mature companies,” the IFC added.
According to the materials, the investment will be backed by a first-loss guarantee of 50% of its amount, supported by France and other guarantors.
As the corporation noted, its contribution as an anchor investor will be crucial in supporting the fund in achieving its first closing in a challenging fundraising environment. The IFC recalled that since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, only one private equity fund has been launched, and its successful closing required significant support from development finance institutions (DFIs), including the anchor role of the IFC (the $350 million Horizon Capital Growth Fund IV – IF-U). REBUF is expected to require similar support and will be financed primarily by DFIs, according to published materials.
Andriy Nosok, managing director and head of direct investments at Dragon Capital, announced at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome in July that the company would invest $20 million of its own funds in REBUF. In addition, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development approved a decision to contribute $25 million to the fund in early July. According to Nosok, the first closing of the fund was planned for September this year.
He recalled that Dragon Capital has been investing in private equity in Ukraine for 25 years, including managing direct investment funds since 2010. REBUF is the third such fund, which follows the same strategy as the previous ones. According to the REBUF presentation, the size of investments in companies is $7-30 million.
Dragon Capital is one of the largest investment groups in Ukraine in the field of investment and financial services, providing a full range of investment banking and brokerage services, direct investments, and asset management for institutional, corporate, and private clients. The company was founded in 2000 in Kyiv. According to founder and CEO Tomas Fiala, the group’s investment portfolio currently includes nearly 50 different companies or real estate projects. Between 2015 and 2021, the company invested approximately $700 million in Ukraine, excluding reinvestments, and plans to invest $100 million in 2025.
As reported, the EBRD and IFC also plan to contribute EUR60 million and EUR40 million, respectively, to the capital of the new Amber Dragon Ukraine Infrastructure Fund I with a declared target size of EUR350 million. The EBRD Board of Directors will consider this project on December 3. The European Investment Bank (EIB) already approved a contribution of EUR40 million to this fund at the end of September.
The portfolio of domestic government bonds (OVDP) held by Ukrainian banks decreased by UAH 3.584 billion (0.4%) to UAH 912.852 billion, while that held by non-residents decreased by UAH 0.181 billion (1.2%) to UAH 15.446 billion.
The OVDP portfolio owned by legal entities increased by UAH 2.073 billion (1.1%) to UAH 190.889 billion, and that of individuals by UAH 0.288 billion (0.3%) to UAH 106.790 billion.
According to the NBU, the overall OVDP portfolio decreased by UAH 1.449 billion (0.1%) to UAH 1,895.060 billion from UAH 1,896.509 billion a day earlier, while the portfolio owned by the NBU and local authorities remained unchanged.
The official exchange rate on November 6 was UAH 42.0671/USD.
PrJSC Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant (DMZ, formerly Evraz-DMZ), part of businessman Oleksandr Yaroslavsky’s DCH Steel group, increased its net loss by 3.1 times compared to the same period last year, to UAH 467.490 million from UAH 152.309 million, according to the results for January-September of this year.
According to the interim report, net income for the reporting period decreased by 64.6%, to UAH 1 billion 518.613 million from UAH 4 billion 289.634 million.
The uncovered loss at the end of September 2025 amounted to UAH -199.622 million.
Production volumes in Q3 2025 amounted to 0.6 thousand tons of metal products, in Q2 – 0.5 thousand tons of metal products and 20.3 thousand tons of coke, and in Q1 – 2.3 thousand tons of metal products and 54.9 thousand tons of coke.
Taking into account the current situation in Ukraine, the industry, and the restrictions in place, as well as the fact that the 2026 budget has not yet been formed, the projected volume of work and services is planned for the following areas of activity: services for processing tolling raw materials into rolled products – 70 thousand tons.
In addition to its core production activities, in Q3 2025, DMZ continued to expand its scope of activities and perform work for contractors in the manufacture and repair of metal structures and laboratory research.
In Q3, the average number of full-time employees was 699, and the wage fund was UAH 57.722 million. At the same time, the wage fund for the quarter decreased by UAH 32.950 million compared to Q2 2025, which was due to the lack of raw materials and a market for products, the shutdown of coke production in May 2025, and the corresponding reduction in personnel.
According to the annual report, in 2024, production volumes amounted to 289.1 thousand tons of blast furnace coke, metal products were not manufactured, but 44.6 thousand tons of square billets were rolled into finished rolled products under a tolling scheme. At the same time, there was a 1.2% decrease in blast furnace coke and a 57.1% decrease in rolled products. In terms of the structure of metal products in 2024, the share of rolled products from rolling mill (RM) No. 1 was 11.3%, and RM No. 2 was 88.7%. The rolling mills of DMZ produced channels, long products, mine props, and rails.
The average number of full-time employees in 2024 decreased by 12.6% to 1,707 people, and the FOP amounted to UAH 415.236 million. The average salary was UAH 19,442 (+17.4% from the 2023 level).
DMZ reported a net loss of UAH 222.117 million in 2024, compared to a net profit of UAH 504.591 million in 2023. Net income decreased by 20.8% to UAH 5 billion 412.422 million from UAH 6 billion 832.241 million.
Retained earnings at the end of 2024 amounted to UAH 170.605 million.
As reported, in 2024, DMZ reduced its rental services by 59.4% compared to 2023, to 42.9 thousand tons, and coke production decreased by 1.2%, to 289.1 thousand tons.
DMZ reduced its rolling services by 23.1% in the first seven months of 2025 compared to the same period last year, to 26,000 tons. in January-August 2025, the plant rolled 33.9 thousand tons, which is at the level of January-July 2024 (33.8 thousand tons).
According to information in the corporate newspaper DCH Steel, during the production campaign in rolling shop No. 2, which will begin after November 10, 2025, it is planned to manufacture (roll) 6.3 thousand tons of metal products.
DMZ received a net profit of UAH 4.225 million in 2022, while in 2021 it was UAH 1 billion 725.157 million. In 2021, the plant received a net profit of UAH 1 billion 725.157 million, while it ended 2020 with a net loss of UAH 394.091 million.
DMZ specializes in the production of steel, cast iron, rolled products, and products made from them.
On March 1, 2018, the DCH Group signed an agreement to purchase the Dnipro Metallurgical Plant from Evraz.
According to NDU data for the second quarter of 2025, Drampisco Limited (Cyprus) owns 97.73% of DMZ shares.
The authorized capital of the private joint-stock company is UAH 574.994 million, and the nominal value of a share is UAH 0.25.
Geographic structure of Ukraine’s foreign trade (trade volume) in January-May 2025, mln. Usd
Source: Open4Business.com.ua
Sales of new commercial vehicles (trucks and special-purpose vehicles) in Ukraine in October 2025 increased by 11% compared to the same month in 2024, reaching 1,203 units, which is also 8% more than in September 2025, according to UkrAvtoprom’s Telegram channel.
As in the previous year, Peugeot was the market leader in October with 115 units sold, compared to 246 units sold in October 2024.
Peugeot took second place with 121 cars. Last October, the brand was eighth in the ranking with 60 cars.
Citroen took third place in the ranking with 95 units, which is 16 cars less than in October 2024, when the brand was second in the ranking. MAN came in fourth with sales of 90 cars, which is 14 units more than in October last year.
Volvo also made it into the top five most popular new special-purpose vehicles with 84 units, which was 13th in October last year with sales of 17 vehicles.
According to UkrAvtoprom, a total of 9,853 new vehicles were added to the Ukrainian fleet of trucks and special-purpose vehicles in January-October, which is 5.5% less than in the same period last year.
As reported, in 2024, according to UkrAvtoprom, 12,900 new commercial vehicles were registered in Ukraine, which is 14% more than in 2023.
Škoda Group CEO Petr Novotny took part in a business roundtable in Brussels chaired by President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev. The discussions focused on deepening cooperation in the field of modernization of transport infrastructure and introduction of European technologies.
At the meeting, Škoda Group presented its strategy for entering the Uzbek market through a joint venture that will focus on three areas:
According to Petr Novotny, Uzbekistan is a promising market open to European investment, and Škoda’s plans are in line with the objectives of the new Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement and the EU’s Global Gateway strategy.
As part of the event, Uzbekistan’s Minister of Transport Ilkhom Makskamov held talks with the group’s management to discuss practical steps to develop rail and urban transport. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev praised the contribution of Škoda Group to the transfer of European technologies and expressed support for the company’s long-term participation in the country’s projects.
The initiative is being implemented in the context of the recently signed PCA between Uzbekistan and the EU, which opens up new opportunities for European businesses in the Uzbek market. Projects in the areas of transport, energy and sustainable development will be financed by the European Investment Bank with the support of the European Commission.
