The state military risk insurance program currently has a limit of UAH 30 million per legal entity and applies only to buildings and equipment. This limit needs to be increased and the program’s coverage expanded to include goods and raw materials, according to Andriy Zdesenko, founder and CEO of the Biosphere Corporation, which recently suffered another loss of approximately UAH 150 million due to an enemy strike on a warehouse.
"This limit is too low for large businesses. Commodity and raw material stocks are not insured. As we see, the main blows are being dealt to logistics and goods, completely halting the consumer economy and, as a result, the entire economy. Therefore, the limit must be increased, ideally to the value of assets, and the option to insure goods and raw materials must be included," he told Interfax-Ukraine.
Zdesenko added that there is currently no state program for insuring against war risks in risky areas such as Dnipropetrovsk and Kyiv regions.
The head of Biosphere emphasized that after the massive attacks, businesses are currently focused on recovery, so in this situation, continuing scheduled inspections by various agencies appears to be putting additional pressure on companies.
"Therefore, I publicly propose that the government impose a moratorium on inspections in the affected regions," Zdesenko stated.
He expressed satisfaction with the meeting that Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky organized with business representatives on August 5.
"This was a productive meeting, during which the Prime Minister took a professional and attentive interest in the problems businesses are facing and the difficulties arising from the devastation caused by the Russian attacks. The Prime Minister urged businesses to develop scenarios A, B, and C and invest in maximum diversification," said the CEO of Biosphere.
He clarified that no specific decisions regarding assistance have yet been made by the authorities, as a critical wish list of large businesses is currently being compiled, but such decisions, with the participation of ministers, should be developed within a week.
Zdesenko also expressed hope that grants and loans for recovery will be provided not only to small and medium-sized businesses, but also to large businesses. However, if this is not possible, banks should be given the option to provide "credit holidays" for affected businesses, without classifying such deferrals as loans falling under the definition of "restructuring," which leads to a downgrade of the borrower’s rating and negatively impacts the banks’ performance.
