The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) expects that the mission of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would arrive in the middle of May, as it was scheduled in the Stand By Arrangement (SBA), NBU Governor Yakiv Smolii has said.

"Regarding the IMF mission, we look forward to its arrival in the middle of May, as outlined in the Stand By Agreement signed last December. The mission will conduct a review of the SBA and decide on the next tranche, which we should receive this year, based on the results of the review," Smolii said at a press briefing in Kyiv on Thursday.

He also said that the NBU fulfilled its part of the requirements that were laid down in the arrangement.

Earlier it was reported with reference to Finance Minister Oksana Markarova that the IMF mission is expected in May or June of the current year.

As reported, the IMF Executive Board, following a meeting on December 19, 2018, approved a new program of cooperation with Ukraine under the Stand-By Arrangement. The amount of the 14-month program is equivalent to SDR 2.8 billion, or about $3.9 billion. Some SDR 1 billion (about $1.4 billion) was provided immediately, while the remaining funds will be provided based on the results of the program reviews in May and September 2019.