- Ukraine gained approval on Wednesday to defer payments to foreign bondholders until 2024.
- The country is in desperate need of cash to sustain its defense against Russian aggression.
- Kyiv owes $19.6 billion in foreign bonds.
Ukraine gained approval from investors to defer payments on the country's foreign bonds to conserve cash and sustain its defense against Russia.
Bondholders, representing about 75% of Ukraine's $19.6 billion in outstanding foreign bonds, gave Kyiv permission to defer both coupon and principal payments until 2024. The move is backed by allies, including the International Monetary Fund and the US, as a way to help Kyiv conserve cash.
"Thanks to the solidarity with Ukraine shown by the private investor community along with the official public sector, we will be able to meet the needs of the state budget of the country in war and to keep our public finances sustainable," Sergii Marchenko, Ukraine's finance minister, said in a statement.
Ukraine has drained its foreign-currency reserves as it continues to defend itself against Russia's invasion, and it's relied heavily on funding from its central bank. The war could shrink Ukraine's economy by one-third as the country recovers from the destruction.
The deferment follows another win for Kyiv on Tuesday, when creditors granted the country approval to renegotiate terms on $3.2 billion worth of so-called gross-domestic-product warrants, debt payments that are linked to Ukraine's economic growth.