Raiffeisen Leasing Aval LLC (RLAV)

MIGA has issued a guarantee of $47.5 million to Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich AG (RZB) covering its shareholder loan of $50 million to its leasing subsidiary in Ukraine, Raiffeisen Leasing Aval LLP (RLAV). The guarantee is covering the risks of transfer restriction and expropriation of funds for a period of up to six years.^[1]

RZB’s shareholder loan is expected to enable RLAV to respond to rapidly growing demand for leasing products in Ukraine. RLAV will use the proceeds of the shareholder loan to extend long-term leases of equipment, machinery and vehicles to Ukrainian enterprises across various sectors. A substantial part of the loan is expected to benefit small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and support investment in agriculture, both of which are currently underserved segments of the leasing market identified by a survey conducted by the IFC.

This is MIGA’s first guarantee in support of RZB’s leasing operations in Ukraine. By supporting a global financial institution’s new leasing subsidiary, MIGA will also contribute to the development of the leasing sector in Ukraine. MIGA is playing an important role in this transaction, as political risk mitigation is a key requirement for the lender to proceed with this investment.

The World Bank Group’s country assistance strategy for Ukraine places a strong emphasis on improving the environment for private sector development and identifies building financial institutions as a priority area. The project is expected to help Ukraine’s private sector gain greater access to financial products and help the country achieve sustainable growth. It is, therefore, consistent with the World Bank’s country partnership strategy for Ukraine.

^[1] The guarantee was expired on April 15, 2016.