Trend: banks reduce portfolios of domestic government bonds (OVDP), the public buys more
At the end of January 2026 the portfolio of domestic government bonds (OVDP) held by Ukrainian banks fell by 9 billion UAH and now stands at 922,67 billion UAH. These figures are provided by financial analyst Andriy Shevchyshyn.
The decline in the aggregate figure is not due to a simultaneous mass exit by all banks. Some institutions are, on the contrary, increasing their portfolios, while others are reducing them through sales or maturities. It is precisely this mixed dynamic that produced the overall reduction.
Banks that increased holdings in OVDP
The largest increase among banks was at Universal Bank. Over eight months its portfolio grew by 6,06 billion UAH and reached 19,81 billion UAH. Much of this growth is linked to the bank servicing monobank clients.
Other banks also increased their positions. FUIB added 5,22 billion UAH to reach 33,63 billion UAH, Raiffeisen Bank increased by 3,82 billion UAH to 42,44 billion UAH, UkrSibbank increased its portfolio by 3,58 billion UAH to 29,41 billion UAH, and Bank “Pivdennyi” added 2,19 billion UAH, taking its total to 8,44 billion UAH.
Who cut their OVDP portfolios the most
Most significantly, PrivatBank reduced its positions. Its portfolio fell by 23,07 billion UAH and now stands at 351,82 billion UAH. Despite this, PrivatBank remains the largest holder of OVDP among banks in this data sample.
Among other reductions, Ukrgasbank cut its portfolio by 9,79 billion UAH to 40,91 billion UAH, KB “Globus” reduced by 6,18 billion UAH to 4,35 billion UAH, and Ukreximbank lowered its holdings by 2,71 billion UAH to 55,90 billion UAH. The analyst notes that reductions do not always mean bonds were sold, since some OVDP may simply have matured.
Who is boosting demand for hryvnia OVDP and what this means for clients
According to Andriy Shevchyshyn, the main driver of the market remains individuals. Their holdings in hryvnia OVDP are increasing by roughly 4 billion UAH each month. This means retail demand is steadily supporting the government bond market.
Corporate purchases have virtually stopped and have shown negative dynamics in recent months. Non-resident volumes remain small compared with other categories. For clients, this is visible in the fact that public interest largely determines the availability of retail issues and their liquidity in the secondary market.
Additional context
Since the start of the year OVDP have brought almost 374 billion UAH to the budget. This figure underscores the importance of the government securities market for financing the budget deficit and explains why demand from both banks and households is important for the economy.