Ambassadors of the Group of Seven (G7) countries have praised the Ukrainian government's decision to nationalize PrivatBank and expressed their hope for strengthening the country's banking sector.

"We recognize and applaud the leadership of the governor of the National Bank of Ukraine, the Prime Minister, the Minister of Finance and the President for their continued efforts to clean up the banking sector and stabilize the economy. The Government's decision to nationalize PrivatBank is an important and necessary step in this process, and it will help ensure that all banks in Ukraine are held to the same prudential regulatory standards. This will make the banking sector stronger and more resilient," the G7 countries' ambassadors said in a statement issued on Monday.

According to the statement, this nationalization is also a means for the government of Ukraine to safeguard deposits of household and legitimate businesses and to facilitate uninterrupted access to banking services for PrivatBank's client base.

The ambassadors also described Ukraine's banking sector clean-up is a vital component of its larger reform efforts.

"We look forward to continuing to support Ukraine and working together to promote macroeconomic and financial stability, improve the investment climate, and help the Ukrainian people continue on a path toward economic prosperity," the statement reads.

As reported, the government on the initiative of the National Bank and PrivatBank shareholders on December 18 made the decision on the nationalization of the financial institution: the state will obtain 100% of the bank capital, while the issue of government domestic loan bonds for this purpose is estimated at UAH 116.8-148 billion.