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Ukraine Registers 18,277 New Companies in H1-2025 Amid Wartime Headwinds

by Roman Cheplyk
Monday, August 4, 2025
2 MIN
Ukraine Registers 18,277 New Companies in H1-2025 Amid Wartime Headwinds

Kyiv leads new incorporations while closures rise 19 %; IT and wholesale trade show strongest formation rates

Key Numbers (Jan–Jun 2025)

Metric 2025 2024 2021 (pre-war)
New companies 18,277 18,605 34,400
Closures 6,653 5,610 4,920
Net increase 11,624 12,995 29,480

Net gain is the lowest in five years as elevated risk, capital shortages and labor outflow cap expansion.


Regional Snapshot

  • Kyiv – 5,830 openings, 2,190 closures

  • Lviv oblast – 1,547 openings, 540 closures

  • Dnipropetrovsk oblast – 1,531 openings, 490 closures

These three regions account for 48 % of all new registrations and the majority of shutdowns, reflecting both concentration of opportunity and wartime exposure.


Sector Trends

  1. Wholesale & Distribution – 15 % share of new firms; steady demand for import-export channels.

  2. Civil Organizations / NGOs – surge in humanitarian and reconstruction activity; also top segment for dissolutions (11 % of closures).

  3. Real Estate & Construction – buoyed by donor-funded rebuilding programs.

  4. Information Technology – new entities up 48 % YoY as Ukraine’s tech talent pivots to product and defense-tech ventures.

  5. Agri-business – continues to expand despite logistical hurdles; investors eye export pipelines via Danube and EU corridors.


Stand-Out Records

  • Largest authorised capitalVelaAlliance (construction JV, UA–Italy) declared ₴14.4 bn.

  • Most prolific founderVitalii Ilnytskyi registered 886 firms in 6 months; owns 3 k+ entities with capitals from ₴1 bn to ₴9.8 bn.


Why It Matters

  • Investor lens – Ukraine’s business formation pace has stabilized at ~18 k per half-year despite front-line risks, signaling resilient entrepreneurial appetite.

  • Policy takeaway – Rising closure rate (19 %) underscores need for streamlined licensing, energy-security guarantees and war-risk insurance to lock in growth.

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