This is a record withdrawal of savings after the introduction of martial law in Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
According to the report of the National Bank, in January 2024, the total volume of deposits of the population in the banking system decreased by 2.5% - by 27.4 billion UAH, after which 1.05 trillion UAH remained in the accounts.
The last time the deposit portfolio of individuals decreased in May 2023, and then it decreased by less than one billion (987 million UAH). And now it is almost 28 times more.
The current withdrawals cannot be compared with the beginning of the Great War, when in February 2022 people took UAH 8.9 billion from banks, and in May 2022 – UAH 4.6 billion. This amounts to UAH 13.5 billion in two months, and is half the outflow in one January-2024.
In the last 7 months, there were no reductions in the population's deposits, and collectively, in 2023, citizens' bank deposits increased by 16.4% (up to UAH 1.08 trillion).
In January 2024, people withdrew both hryvnia and foreign currency from their accounts:
– hryvnia deposits – decreased by 2.6% (by UAH 18.8 billion), to UAH 692.2 billion;
- foreign currency deposits - decreased by 2.1% (by $200 million), to $9.47 billion.
At the same time, Ukrainians began to take out loans more actively in banks, where they mostly issue card loans (open/increase credit limits on card accounts) - so-called loans for life, for current purchases. In January 2024, according to the report of the National Bank, lending to individuals in banks increased by 2.3% (by UAH 4.9 billion), and the loan portfolio reached UAH 215.5 billion.
Deposits of legal entities (which were actively growing in previous months) also decreased in January 2024 - by 1.7% (by UAH 21.8 billion).
