Ukrainian marketplace Rozetka secures €25M EBRD loan for wartime expansion
What's the deal? The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved a €25M ($29.41M) senior long-term loan for Rozetka Group, Ukraine's dominant e-commerce marketplace. The funding is split into two tranches: €20M for Rozetka's Ukrainian operations and €5M for its Polish entity, Rozetka EU LLC.
Of the total, €10M will cover immediate working capital needs. The remaining €15M is earmarked for further liquidity and potential capital investments.
Founded in 2005 by Vladyslav and Iryna Chechotkin, Rozetka evolved from a niche electronics shop into a multi-category marketplace with roughly 5,000 employees. Horizon Capital is listed as a co-owner.
Why now? Ukraine's war economy has made long-term capital scarce and expensive. The EBRD loan is designed to give Rozetka stable financing during the conflict while backing its strategic push into neighbouring markets — starting with Poland.
The project is supported by the EU's Ukraine Investment Framework, which facilitates "green" initiatives like the procurement of energy-efficient household appliances. It also carries a social mandate to help reintegrate veterans and other vulnerable groups into the workforce.
What could go wrong? The obvious risk is the war itself. Continued hostilities could disrupt logistics, damage infrastructure, and erode consumer spending power inside Ukraine. Expanding into Poland simultaneously adds execution complexity — Rozetka will be fighting for share in a competitive Central European e-commerce market while managing wartime operations at home.
The signal: International development banks are increasingly treating Ukrainian companies not just as aid recipients but as viable commercial borrowers. The EBRD's willingness to extend a long-term loan — with a green and social component — signals confidence in Rozetka's fundamentals and, more broadly, in Ukraine's digital economy surviving the war. It also reflects a pattern of Ukrainian tech and e-commerce firms using the conflict as a catalyst for geographic diversification into the EU.
Read more: kyivpost.com
