The amount of money transfers to Ukraine using international payment systems in 2018 was eight times more than the sum of money sent from Ukraine.
According to a posting on the website of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), the share of transfers in money transfer systems to Ukraine was 17% from the United States, 13% from Israel, 9% from Russia, 8% from Italy, 7% from Poland, and 46% from other countries (221 countries).
In 2018, both residents and nonresidents used money transfer systems to transact the following transfers: $2.301 billion in equivalent to Ukraine (28.28% of total transfers); $294 million in equivalent abroad (3.61% of total transfers) and UAH 150.53 billion or $5.541 billion in equivalent within Ukraine (68.11% of the total value of transfers).
These data do not include information on transfers transacted by banks, card payment schemes and post offices.
Domestic transfers in money transfer systems over 2018 has increased by 24.3% year-over-year (in 2017 domestic transfers accounted for over UAH 120.5 billion or $4.456 billion in equivalent). Most of domestic transfers (92%) are transacted in systems established by nonbank institutions.
Kness Group, a large EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) contractor in Ukraine, has launched first own solar power plants with a total power capacity of 33 MW, Director General of the group Serhiy Shakalov has said in an interview with the Energy Reform website.
The total investment in construction of the plants was EUR 30 million, including EUR 4.5 million of own funds of the group, and the rest is borrowed funds from Danish IFU and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
The major EPC contractor includes the engineering company Podilsky Energy Consulting. The company sells inverter equipment, power collection cabinets, generation monitoring systems and supporting structures for Ukrainian-made solar cell arrays. In February 2019, the group launched a first large solar cell arrays plant in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian media Internet advertising market expands by 39.9% in 2018, to UAH 3.511 billion, the Ukrainian Internet Association (UIA) has said.
The share of direct sales on this market over the period came to 56%. The segments of media Internet advertising are the following: banner advertising with 37% of the market share (a decline by 12.6 percentage points (p.p.) on 2017), in-stream video (pre-roll, mid-roll, post-roll, pause-roll, overlay-advertisement, picture-in-pause) was – 42% (growth of 15.8 p.p.), in-page video advertising (content-roll) – 9% (a rise by 6.8 p.p.), other non-standard solutions (pop-up and pop-up pop-ups, catfish and screen-glide formats, synchronous banners, frontlines, full-screen advertising, sound advertisement in a digital audio stream and other types) – 7% (a decline by 5 p.p.) and sponsorship – 5% (a fall by 4.8 p.p.).
The share of mobile media Internet advertising (targeted at mobile device users) of the total turnover of media Internet advertising was the following: 30% for banner advertising (a rise by 16 p.p.), 29% for in-stream video (a rise by 18 p.p.), 14% for in-page video (content-roll, a rise by 8.5 p.p.), 14% – for non-standard solutions (growth by 10.5 p.p.) and 13% for sponsorship (a rise by 12 p.p.).
The share of Programmatic (automated advertising) was 25.91% for purchases by agencies and 50.35% for platforms.
The share of social media and instant messengers (FB, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Skype, Viber and other applications) was also determined in advertising – 34.45% (a rise by 8 p.p.).
The methodology for measuring the volume of media Internet advertising was based on a cross-sectional analysis of survey data from the largest advertising agencies, websites and sales houses.
“The survey involved leading online advertising agencies: Dentsu Aegis Network Ukraine, razom communications, Sigma, ITCG, Havas Digital, Publicis One, TMGU, AdWork, DIEVO, MediaHead, Netpeak, newage, and representatives of the largest sites, holdings and sales-houses: Autocentre, Edipress, Lux (24 channel), RBC, RIA, Ukr.net, UMH, Go2Net, FISH, Adpartner, Rontar, Online.ua, Novoye Vremia, RST and Obozrevatel,” the association said.
In 2018, the Russian Federation granted citizenship to 83,081 citizens of Ukraine, according to statistics on the migration situation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation. In particular, 83,081 Ukrainians received Russian citizenship (accepted, restored, recognized) in January-December. Also during this period, a decision was made to issue 64,861 residence permits for Ukrainians (currently, 170,638 Ukrainians live by residence permits in Russia).
In addition, in 2018, citizens of Ukraine received 77,075 permits for temporary residence (160,706 Ukrainians currently live under such permits in the Russian Federation).
As reported, 85,119 Ukrainians received Russian citizenship in 2017.
Atlas Capital Energy LLC, belonged to Norway’s Scatec Solar, in March 2019 will start building a solar power plant with a capacity of 50 MW in Hola Prystan district of Kherson region. This information was presented at a meeting of Head of Kherson Regional Administration Andriy Hordeyev with top managers of Atlas Capital Energy LLC on Wednesday, the press service of the administration reported. Currently, according to the regional administration, five wind farms and 31 solar power plants with a capacity of 294 MW are located in Kherson region. The volume of attracted investments in these facilities is UAH 1 billion.
As reported, in January 2019, Scatec Solar said that its investment in the construction of a solar power plant with a capacity of 150 MW in Mykolaiv region will amount to EUR180 million. In July 2018, the company signed an agreement with Rengy Development (Kyiv) on the joint construction of a solar power plant in Mykolaiv region with a capacity of 47 MW for EUR 52 million.
At the beginning of 2019, Scatec Solar also commenced construction of a Kamianka solar power plant in Cherkasy region with a capacity of 30 MW. The cost of the project, which is scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter of this year, is EUR 35 million.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) finances these projects – traditionally it provided for financing of 70% of the project cost.
AXA Group (France) has successfully completed the deal with Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited (Fairfax, Canada) to sell its subsidiaries in Ukraine – private joint-stock company AXA Insurance and AXA Life Insurance double liability company (both based in Kyiv), AXA has said in a press release. As reported, The National Commission for Financial Service Markets Regulation in resolution issued on January 10, 2019 approved the indirect holding of 99.98% shares in private joint-stock company AXA Insurance and 100% of double liability company AXA Life Insurance. The commission also allowed FFHL Group Ltd. (Canada) to directly hold 99.9989% shares in AXA Life Insurance.
Earlier the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine permitted FFHL Group Ltd. to complete the deal.
AXA Group (France) on October 23, 2018 announced the sale of 100% of AXA Insurance and AXA Life Insurance to Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited.
Fairfax, headquartered in Toronto (Canada), is a financial services holding company that through a network of its own companies provides investment management, property and liability insurance, and reinsurance. In February 2015, Fairfax announced the purchase of 100% in QBE Ukraine insurance company, later renaming the company as Colonnade Ukraine.
AXA Insurance has been operating on the Ukrainian market since 2007. AXA Life Insurance was registered in July 2013.
