Agribusiness financing during the wartime: What banks consider when assessing companies

What approach should banks take to financing agribusiness amid high security risks, and how are companies’ financing needs changing? These issues were addressed by Semen Syniakov, Director of the Department for Cooperation with Agricultural Enterprises and Petroleum Products Market Operators at Pivdenny Bank, at the 17th International Conference “Effective Management of Agricultural Companies” (LFM 2026).

He took part in the discussion “Agricultural Exports Under Pressure: Logistics, Trading and Business Resilience”, where representatives of the agricultural sector, government and financial institutions discussed how companies can adapt to a new operating environment.

According to Semen Syniakov, despite high wartime risks and unprecedented logistical pressure on exports, financing remains available to Ukrainian agribusinesses. The banking sector continues to actively support agricultural companies by using such instruments as extending financing terms, restructuring existing investment loans and providing timely additional financing. However, approaches to assessing borrowers have changed dramatically. Today, successful access to financing depends less on standard financial indicators and more on viability of a company’s business model and availability of a clear “Plan B” in its commercial strategy and export logistics. For financial institutions, it has become critically important to see that a company can ensure the uninterrupted flow of products and maintain a stable inflow of liquidity even under crisis conditions. The bank needs to clearly understand how a company will operate under different scenarios, where it will redirect its sales and what resources it will use to service its debt. The absence of such a contingency strategy significantly complicates the ability to support the business.

The approach to loan collateral has also changed substantially. Due to security risks, the market value of collateral – particularly critical infrastructure assets – can change sharply and unpredictably. Therefore, when assessing a client, banks are shifting their focus from tangible collateral to a comprehensive analysis of the company’s market position, business model and ability to generate stable cash flow. Under today’s conditions, Pivdenny Bank views a business not simply as a client, but exclusively as a long-term partner.

“We operate in the same environment, understand the challenges and risks that agricultural companies are facing today, and recognise that there are no universal solutions under the current circumstances. That is why we are ready to work together with our clients to find individual financial solutions that match their specific business model, needs and development potential,” concluded Semen Syniakov.