The International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, will issue its first loan in the national currency, hryvnia, in Ukraine to Auchan Retail.

IFC said on Wednesday that it is extending an eight-year loan worth around UAH 400 million, or about $15 million, to support its long-term investment program in Ukraine, which will help back up local producers and improve standards in the retail sector in Ukraine.

Head of the IFC regional office in Ukraine and Belarus Jason Pellmar in particular said that IFC is ready to deploy a program to provide individualized financial products to Ukrainian clients from various sectors of the economy and help to extend the terms of financing in the hryvnia, which is "extremely important for economic modernization and growth."

Auchan Retail Ukraine CFO Michel Larivière said that the new IFC disbursement would help his company minimize currency risks.