Finnvera and Ukraine: export credit guarantees and the new €240 million SISU programme

Finnvera is Finland’s official export credit agency and a state-owned financing company. For companies selling to or investing in Ukraine, it is often the first Finnish instrument to look at: it can take on credit risk that commercial banks and insurers usually will not accept in a country at war.

1. Export credit guarantees under the €200 million loss-compensation commitment

Finnvera has been able to grant export credit guarantees for Ukraine since the beginning of 2024. Because the risk is very high, it does this under a special €200 million loss-compensation commitment from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, covering guarantees granted in 2024–2026.

What Finnvera has reported:

• In 2025, Finnvera’s financing for Finnish exports to Ukraine amounted to over €27 million.
• At the end of 2025, Ukraine ranked 20th in Finnvera’s export credit guarantee exposure, with liabilities of €85 million including binding offers. In June 2026 Finnvera put its current exposure at €89 million, and said existing exposure plus planned projects was approaching about €150 million that year.
• Most guarantees so far have been short-term credit insurance, although there is interest in longer repayment periods and buyer credit guarantees, typical for capital goods.
• The risk obligor can be a bank, a Ukrainian company or the Ukrainian state.
• Published examples include a guarantee with ING Bank for Nokia’s €30 million deliveries to Vodafone Ukraine, and an MoU regarding Metso’s deliveries to BGV Group.

Check the dates: the loss-compensation commitment covers guarantees granted during 2024–2026. Confirm with Finnvera what applies to guarantees from 2027 onwards.

2. EIF guarantee arrangement for SMEs and mid-caps

In summer 2025 Finnvera and the European Investment Fund (EIF) signed an arrangement that lets Finnvera grant additional export credit guarantees for Ukraine to Finnish SMEs and mid-caps with fewer than 500 employees trading with Ukraine.

3. SISU – the EU-backed €240 million guarantee programme

SISU (Strategic Investment and Support for Ukraine) is a joint initiative of Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Finnvera under the EU’s Ukraine Investment Framework.

• The final guarantee agreement was signed on 27 October 2026. The commitment had been announced at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in June 2026. Finnvera can now issue guarantees under the programme.
• The European Commission provides a 75% guarantee on Finnvera financing related to exports to Ukraine, up to a maximum of €240 million in financing.
• The EU guarantee can be used in Finnvera’s buyer credit guarantees, investment guarantees and direct loans.
• Target areas named by Finnvera include energy, digital infrastructure, logistics and critical raw materials, plus advanced manufacturing, metallurgy and defence and dual-use projects.

Complementary grant component: the Ministry for Foreign Affairs is adding a component funded entirely from the UIF. Finnvera’s releases gave the amount as €36.6 million, while the Ministry’s later announcement states €37.3 million. The component supports Ukrainian businesses in the defence, security and dual-use sectors, and includes direct support for Ukrainian start-ups and technical assistance for Ukrainian projects involving a Finnish supplier. Finnvera said it will launch at a later stage, so check the Ministry’s pages for the current amount and status.

4. Other cooperation

• FUIF: In projects under the Finland–Ukraine Investment Facility, Finnvera guarantees the export credit (see our FUIF guide).
• Dual-use cooperation: On 22 April 2026 Finnvera and four other European export financiers (BGK, Bpifrance, CDP and the National Development Bank of the Czech Republic) signed a joint statement of intent, led by the European Commission, to explore financing dual-use projects in Ukraine.
• Finnvera also organises Ukraine financing workshops for companies.

Who is this relevant for?

• Finnish exporters of goods and services to Ukrainian companies, banks or public buyers.
• Finnish companies investing in Ukraine – investment guarantees, now also with SISU backing.
• Banks financing Ukrainian buyers of Finnish goods – buyer credit guarantees.

Practical notes

• Finnvera itself notes that preparing Ukraine export projects takes a long time and that risk assessment requires careful consideration. Engage early, before contract terms are fixed.
• Have a clear picture of the buyer, the obligor (bank, company or state), repayment terms and the Finnish content of the delivery.