In Ukraine, 73,292 thousand births and 259,853 thousand deaths were registered from January through June 2026. Thus, for every newborn, there were nearly four deaths, whereas in the first half of 2025, the ratio was one to three.
This was reported by OpenDataBot on July 22, citing data from the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine.
The number of births in the first half of the year fell by 16% compared to the same period in 2025, when 86,795 thousand newborns were registered in Ukraine. Compared to the pre-war period, the birth rate has nearly halved.
On average, about 12,000 children were born each month in Ukraine throughout 2026. Ten years ago, the average monthly figure was about 32,000.
Boys accounted for 51% of newborns, and girls for 49%.
The Experts Club Analytical Center has released a ranking of Ukraine’s largest insurance companies by premium volume for the first half of 2026, based on data from the “PRIMA” project of the National Association of Insurers of Ukraine.
The top five insurers collected nearly 16 billion UAH in premiums. The TAS Insurance Group retained its lead, but the most notable changes occurred in the fourth and fifth positions: Arsenal Insurance entered the ranking, while VUSO dropped out of the top five.
Overall Ranking of Insurance Companies
The TAS Insurance Group took first place, collecting 3.857 billion UAH in premiums. Compared to January–June 2025, this figure increased by 11.6%.
ARKS remained in second place with premiums totaling 3.146 billion UAH. Its premiums grew by 15.2%.
“Unica” took third place with 3.076 billion UAH. The company demonstrated the highest growth rate among the top three, increasing its premium volume by 23.5%.
“Arsenal Insurance” moved into fourth place, collecting 2.978 billion UAH. A year earlier, it had not been among the top five insurers.
“INGO” took fifth place with premiums totaling 2.934 billion UAH. Its premium income increased by 22.9%, but the company dropped one spot due to the rapid growth of “Arsenal Insurance.”
The gap between fourth and fifth place was only 44 million UAH, indicating intense competition among the largest general insurers.
MTPL Insurance Ranking
The TAS Group remained the largest player in the mandatory motor third-party liability insurance market, collecting 2.112 billion UAH in premiums. Growth compared to the first half of 2025 was 13.4%.
Oranta took second place with 1.569 billion UAH in premiums and 6.5% growth. Knyazha Vienna Insurance Group ranks third with 1.172 billion UAH in premiums, a 2.8% increase over last year’s figure.
Arsenal Insurance took fourth place with 805.3 million UAH. Rounding out the top five is PZU Ukraine, which collected 614.8 million UAH and returned to the ranks of the segment’s leaders.
INGO and USG, which were among the top five a year earlier, dropped out of the ranking. The combined premium volume of the five largest MTPL insurers totaled approximately 6.27 billion UAH.
The MTPL market remains one of the most concentrated segments of the Ukrainian insurance industry.
Companies with a well-developed regional network, a large customer base, and the ability to quickly settle mass insurance claims have a competitive advantage.
“Green Card” Ranking
The most notable changes occurred in the international motor liability insurance market.
PZU Ukraine took first place, more than doubling its premium volume—by 101.8%—to 656.6 million UAH. A year earlier, the company had ranked third.
The TAS Group moved up to second place. Its premiums decreased by 19.9%, to 519 million UAH.
USG took third place, with its premiums declining by 37.6% to 341.6 million UAH. Knyazha Vienna Insurance Group ranked fourth with 194.1 million UAH and growth of 6.7%.
Rounding out the top five was VUSO with 135.7 million UAH, replacing INGO in the ranking.
The combined premiums of the top five totaled approximately 1.85 billion UAH. PZU Ukraine’s surge was the most notable change among all the insurance segments reviewed.
CASCO Ranking
“Arsenal Insurance” became the new leader in the CASCO market, collecting 1.523 billion UAH in premiums. Over the year, this figure increased by 30.1%.
“ARKS,” which previously held first place, moved down to second place with a result of 1.499 billion UAH. Its premiums grew by 15.9%. The gap between the two leaders was only 24 million UAH.
Third place went to “VUSO” with 761.3 million UAH and growth of 25.1%. “Unica” is in fourth place, having increased its premiums by 33.5% to 753.8 million UAH.
“Universalna” took fifth place with premiums totaling 680.3 million UAH, which is 25.3% higher than the result for the first half of 2025.
The five largest companies collected approximately 5.22 billion UAH in the CASCO segment. All companies in the ranking showed double-digit growth, which may be due to rising costs of vehicles, repairs, and spare parts, as well as higher insurance coverage amounts.
Voluntary Health Insurance Ranking
The composition and order of the top five companies in the voluntary health insurance market remained unchanged.
Unica remained the market leader, collecting 1.333 billion UAH in premiums. Growth stood at 7.3%.
“Universalna” took second place with 774.1 million UAH and growth of 30.9%. “INGO” is in third place, having increased its premiums by 36.6% to 714.3 million UAH.
“VUSO” took fourth place with 577.7 million UAH.
The company demonstrated the highest growth rate among the top five—41.8%.
ARKS retained fifth place, collecting 361.9 million UAH, which is 12.4% more than last year’s figure.
The combined premium volume of the top five companies reached 3.76 billion UAH. The segment’s rapid growth is driven by corporate health insurance programs, which employers use to attract and retain employees.
Ranking of Life Insurance Companies
The life insurance market maintains the most stable leadership structure.
MetLife ranks first with premiums totaling 1.599 billion UAH. Over the past year, the company’s premium income grew by 11.4%. It accounts for approximately 57% of the top five companies’ combined premiums.
TAS ranks second with 525.7 million UAH. The company posted the highest growth rate among the segment’s leaders, increasing its premiums by 21.9%.
Grave Ukraine Life Insurance ranks third with 308.7 million UAH and 9.1% growth.
PZU Ukraine Life Insurance ranks fourth, having collected 205.3 million UAH, which is 8.5% more than a year earlier.
Arks Life rounds out the top five with premiums of 175.5 million UAH and growth of 3.9%.
The combined premium volume of the five largest life insurance companies totaled 2.81 billion UAH.
Key Findings from Experts Club
The Ukrainian insurance market maintained a high level of concentration in the first half of 2026. The same companies hold leading positions in several segments at once, but there is no single leader across all segments.
The TAS Group tops the overall ranking and the MTPL market; PZU Ukraine took first place in Green Card insurance; “Arsenal Insurance” has become the leader in comprehensive auto insurance (CASCO), “Unica” retains first place in health insurance, and “MetLife” continues to dominate the life insurance sector.
“Arsenal Insurance” demonstrated the most notable strengthening of its position. It entered the overall top 5, took first place in comprehensive auto insurance, and ranked fourth in compulsory auto liability insurance.
At the same time, the “Green Card” results show that insurers’ positions can change rapidly, even within a single year. PZU Ukraine’s premiums more than doubled, while those of TAS and USG declined significantly.
Premium growth does not always correspond to a comparable increase in the number of policies. A significant portion of this trend may be attributed to rising costs of vehicles, medical services, repairs, and other insured items. To fully assess a company’s position, it is necessary to consider not only premiums but also claims payments, loss ratios, reserves, capital, and the speed of claims settlement.
According to the National Agency for Insurance Supervision (NAIS), as of the end of June 2026, there were 47 insurers operating in the Ukrainian insurance market. Ten companies specialized in life insurance, while another participant—the Export-Credit Agency—held special status.
According to Serbian Economist, the Ukrainian documentary “Night Shift,” directed by Megumi Lim, has been selected for the competition program of the 39th Herceg Novi Film Festival, which will take place in Montenegro from August 22 to 28, 2026.
The festival’s documentary section will feature 26 films by filmmakers from various countries. Of these, 24 films will compete for the “Golden Mimosa” award, while two others will be screened out of competition. Screenings of the documentary program will take place from August 23 to 27 in the courtyard of writer Ivo Andrić’s house.
Ukraine will be represented by the film *Night Shift*, shot in 2025. Its director is Megumi Lim, a documentary filmmaker and journalist based in Kyiv who previously worked with international media outlets in Japan and China.
The 29-minute film tells the story of people who continue to work in Kharkiv during the nighttime curfew. The film’s protagonists are employees of public services and businesses who keep the city functioning amid regular Russian attacks. The filmmakers show how the war has changed Kharkiv’s nightlife and how residents maintain their usual rhythm despite the threats.
“Night Shift” marks Megumi Lim’s debut short documentary. In 2025, the film won the Audience Choice Award at the Kyiv International Short Film Festival and was also screened at several international film festivals.
The festival program in Herceg Novi also features documentaries from the United States, Norway, Greenland, Chad, Palestine, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, Iran, the United Kingdom, Azerbaijan, Finland, France, Spain, Switzerland, Portugal, Colombia, Serbia, Georgia, Sweden, and Montenegro.
Vladimir Perović, the documentary program’s selector, noted that this year’s program focuses on the war in Ukraine, the situations in Palestine and Bosnia, climate change, the legacy of colonialism, historical memory, the status of women, and the challenges of coming of age.
The festival will take place under the slogan “All the Colors of Cinema” at several venues in Herceg Novi. In addition to the documentary section, the program includes regional feature-length films, European cinema, student films, television series, and events for film industry professionals.
In the “Medium- and Long-Term Market” section of the UEB, trading continued for July and August 2026 resources. In total, nine companies placed bids to buy or sell natural gas: Ukrnafta, GPK Naftogaz Trading, the Ukrainian Gas Transmission System Operator, LTK Electrum, and others. In total, 4,350 thousand cubic meters of natural gas—for July and August 2026—were sold in the section via the GTS and UGS facilities.
In the UEB’s short-term natural gas market, participants submitted bids on the intraday market and the “day-ahead” market. A total of 56 trades were concluded, with a combined volume of 1,551 thousand cubic meters.
This week, European gas contracts rose in price again. The M+1 TTF rose in every session: from 48.8 euros/MWh at the close of the previous Friday to about 57 euros/MWh on the morning of July 17 (+15%). The main drivers were the resumption of hostilities between the U.S. and Iran and new risks to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The status of the strait and differences in interpretation remain highly contentious. The market is once again assessing not only the actual availability of Qatari LNG, but also freight rates, insurance, and shipowners’ willingness to call at ports in the region.
Natural gas imports from Europe stood at 1.6 million cubic meters per day.
As of July 1, 2026, the number of pensioners in Ukraine stood at 9,976,600, a decrease of 190,500 since the beginning of the year, according to Opendatabot, citing data from the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
In the second quarter alone, the number of pension recipients decreased by 74,400 people. The total decline for the first half of the year has already exceeded the figure for all of 2025.
The average monthly pension payment as of early July was 7,272.68 UAH. At the same time, the actual amount of payments varies significantly depending on the region, length of insurance coverage, earnings, and type of pension.
The Pension Fund’s data does not cover the temporarily occupied territories, where Ukrainian authorities are unable to maintain a complete registry of benefit recipients.
Ukraine, pensioner, pension, demographics: The number of pensioners in Ukraine has fallen below 10 million
As of July 1, 2026, the number of pensioners in Ukraine stood at 9,976,600, a decrease of 190,500 since the beginning of the year, according to Opendatabot, citing data from the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
In the second quarter alone, the number of pension recipients decreased by 74,400 people. The total decline for the first half of the year has already exceeded the figure for all of 2025.
The average monthly pension payment as of early July was 7,272.68 UAH. At the same time, the actual amount of payments varies significantly depending on the region, length of service, earnings, and type of pension.
The Pension Fund’s data does not cover temporarily occupied territories, where Ukrainian authorities are unable to maintain a complete record of benefit recipients.
According to data from the Pension Fund of Ukraine as of July 1, 2026, approximately 2.4 million Ukrainian pensioners—or 24% of the total number—receive between 3,001 and 4,000 UAH per month.
The average payment within this group is 3,581.58 UAH. Another 335,800 people, or 3.4% of pensioners, receive no more than 3,000 UAH, while 1.72 million people receive between 4,000 and 5,000 UAH.
At the same time, approximately 3.21 million people—or nearly one-third of all pensioners—receive a pension of more than 7,000 UAH. Payments exceeding 20,000 UAH are made to 436,200 people, including 29,500 pensioners who receive more than 30,000 UAH per month.
The average pension nationwide is 7,272.68 UAH; however, it exceeds the amount received by most recipients due to significantly higher pensions for certain categories.
