The senior government officials, the National Bank of Ukraine's senior management team have held a meeting with representatives from Group 1 and Group 2 banks.
The current situation in the banking and financial sectors, the latest developments in the money and foreign exchange markets, and the operation of banks' branches in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea were on the agenda of the meeting.
When discussing the situation in the foreign exchange market, Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk pointed out that financial aid, which was expected to be provided to Ukraine in the near future by foreign creditors, specifically, the International Monetary Fund, would help stabilize the hryvnia exchange rate.
According to the Prime Minister, under challenging conditions, banks are faced with the task of interacting with customers being of the greatest value for the banking system in an efficient way.
In addition, Mr Arseniy Yatsenyuk focused bank senior managers' attention on lending to the agriculture sector, which is referred to as the priority sector of the economy.
In his turn, Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine Stepan Kubiv focused on the social responsibility that the banking sector bears for savers and society. Mr Kubiv told the meeting participants about the improved liquidity support mechanism designed to upheld banks' lending ability and called on banks to actively use this facility. In his opinion, it would help maintain bank lending to the economy, specifically, to the agrarian sector.
The meeting participants also contemplated the Development Strategy for the Banking System for the period up to 2020 that would bring about a long-term profound shift in the financial system. The representatives of the banking community and experts from international institutions have been invited to participate in this project, which will promote open dialogue and allow for the proposals put forward by the financial sector representatives to be taken into account. Two strategic meetings involving these experts are scheduled to be held soon.