WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – Kiev decided to nationalize PrivatBank after the country’s central bank, the National Bank of Ukraine, declared it insolvent on Sunday. The central bank said nationalizing PrivatBank, which holds about one-third of all deposits in Ukraine, was necessary to avert a meltdown of the Ukrainian economy.
"The World Bank believes that this decision is an important step to preserve Ukraine’s financial stability, increase confidence in the banking system and provide equal treatment for all bank requiring recapitalization," Monday’s release stated.
19 December 2016, 14:06 GMT
The World Bank has underscored the need to restructure the lender while safeguarding deposits and minimizing costs to taxpayers. It also pledged to continue supporting the government in its effort to advance economic reforms, according to the release.
Dmytro Dubilet, deputy head of PrivatBank's management board, wrote on his Facebook page that the move by the central bank was "surprising news” but that depositors’ money is safe.
