The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has decided to increase the maximum amount of preferential lending for enterprises of the defense-industrial complex fivefold. The limit has risen from 100 to 500 million hryvnia, which, according to Prime Minister Serhiy Kyrylenko, will allow domestic manufacturers to significantly ramp up the production of weapons and military equipment for the front. This was reported on September 23, 2026, by RBC-Ukraine, citing an official statement from the head of government.
Program mechanics: rates and terms
Enterprises carrying out state defense contracts will be able to raise up to 500 million hryvnia to replenish their working capital. Preferential interest rates on such loans will range from 5% to 10% per annum, depending on the amount borrowed. In addition, the government has provided for a separate category of investment loans needed to develop and modernize the production capacities of defense enterprises. Their cost is fixed at 5% per annum. Thus, the defense-industrial complex gains access to two financing instruments: short-term replenishment of working capital and long-term investment loans for modernization.
Implementation infrastructure and budget financing
The preferential lending program will operate through the National Development Institution. Funds already allocated in the state budget of Ukraine will be used for its implementation, eliminating the need for additional appropriations. "The goal is to scale up production and increase the output of Ukrainian weapons for the front," Serhiy Kyrylenko emphasized, underscoring the practical orientation of the initiative. The fivefold expansion of the limit indicates that the current volume of defense orders substantially exceeds the capabilities of enterprises under the previous financial ceiling.
Context: digital procurement and international cooperation
The Cabinet's decision fits into the broader context of the transformation of Ukraine's defense sector. More than 500 units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces have already joined the DOT-Chain Defence online weapons store, which is being developed by the DOT Defense Procurement Agency of the Ministry of Defense. Military units have been given the ability to independently select and order the equipment they need in accordance with front-line requirements, which speeds up logistics and reduces bureaucratic barriers. In parallel, according to CBS News, the Ministries of Defense of Ukraine and the United States are working on an agreement that is expected to allow the expansion of testing and production of Ukrainian defense technologies on American soil. This opens up additional prospects for domestic developers and may become the next stage after the domestic scaling of lending.
Significance for the defense sector
The fivefold increase in the lending limit is not merely a technical adjustment of the program's parameters, but a signal of the systematic expansion of the defense-industrial complex's production capacities. The combination of cheaper working capital (5–10% per annum versus market rates), the availability of 5% investment loans, and the already operational digital procurement platform forms a closed loop: the enterprise receives financing, ramps up output, and the units of the Armed Forces promptly receive the products through DOT-Chain Defence. In the context of ongoing hostilities and growing demand for weapons and equipment, this combination of instruments becomes a critically important element of Ukraine's defense strategy.
