Ukrainian Finance Ministry preparing to sell Sense Bank, Ukrgasbank in 2024

MOSCOW. Jan 24 (Interfax) - There is foreign investors' interest in Ukrainian state-owned Sense Bank and Ukrgasbank, which could be sold this year, Ukrainian media said, citing Deputy Finance Minister for European Integration Yury Draganchuk as saying at a press briefing on Wednesday.

"We see foreign investors' interest in two state-owned banks. They are Ukrgasbank and Sense Bank. And we are actively preparing them for sale," Draganchuk said.

The Finance Ministry will select financial advisors for these banks, and is actively drafting amendments to the law on the sale of state-owned banks together with the World Bank to make the procedure for selling Sense Bank and Ukrgasbank to institutional investors "as transparent as possible," he said.

"We are willing to sell these two banks this year," Draganchuk said when commenting on a possible timeframe.

"Moreover, these potential investors are hurrying us up. Let's do it, we're ready. In parallel, these two banks are being prepared from inside," he said.

Draganchuk also commented on the possibility of selling PrivatBank, saying that despite the state's strategy to reduce its share in the banking sector, "no one will buy PrivatBank for the price the state is ready to sell it for. "I'm not ready to sell a bank that brings $1 billion in profit to the state budget annually," he said.

"If there is a real buyer, we will certainly sell it. But the market shows today that there are no players ready to buy it," Draganchuk said.