Investing in the Businesses Rebuilding Ukraine: USVF at CEE4Impact Day 2026

On 8 October 2026, the Ukrainian Social Venture Fund team joined CEE4Impact Day in Budapest. The event brought together investors, fund managers, entrepreneurs and experts to examine the future of Europe’s impact economy. For USVF, it was an opportunity to share practical experience of financing Ukrainian social enterprises and explore how international partnerships can help more businesses become ready for investment.

The programme addressed regenerative capitalism, the purpose of capital and the ways investors assess the value businesses create. Nikolaus Hutter encouraged participants to consider profit as a tool for achieving wider goals. Dr Arnaud Blandin’s observation that “price does not equal value” prompted reflection on how investment decisions account for healthy communities, trust, education, access to healthcare and functioning ecosystems.

Cyril Gouiffes of the European Investment Fund raised a question about the sector’s development: “Impact investing has gained recognition, but it has not gained independence.” He highlighted its continuing reliance on public funding and the importance of reaching entrepreneurs and markets that conventional finance overlooks.

Professor Vincent Sai’s talk, Defining Moments, added a personal perspective. His reflections on the opportunities people can create for one another resonated with our experience of supporting entrepreneurs. A first chance to test an idea, a mentor’s guidance or timely financing can influence whether a business moves forward.

The Ukraine-focused panel, Stop talking. Start investing., examined how these ideas translate into investment decisions during war. USVF CEO Alena Kalibaba joined Petr Vitek of Tilia Impact Ventures and Lilla Gyarmati of Finance in Motion, with Nikolaus Hutter moderating the discussion.

Alena proposed approaching Ukraine’s investment potential through individual enterprises: their teams, customers, business models and results. The practical questions are which businesses can attract investment today, what prevents others from doing so, and how investors and support organisations can help them prepare.

“In frontier markets, you don’t find the deals. You make them,” Hutter observed during the discussion.

This describes an important part of USVF’s work. We support entrepreneurs through incubation, acceleration, due diligence, financing and continued portfolio support. Building an investment pipeline requires sustained work with teams as they test demand, improve financial management and develop their businesses.

Alena highlighted the fund’s results:

“In 2025, USVF provided around UAH 10 million to support the development of social enterprises, including UAH 1.7 million in repayable financial support. Ten enterprises received financing, alongside 571 hours of mentoring and post-investment assistance.”

VR Mentality, a Ukrainian company developing VR-based solutions for psychological rehabilitation, illustrates this approach. Through USVF’s programmes, the team strengthened its financial management, introduced cash-flow forecasting and profit-and-loss reporting, and developed international research partnerships. These capabilities support the company’s development alongside its work on rehabilitation technologies.

Sunny Coffee offers another example. The inclusive business, which employs people with intellectual disabilities, generated UAH 3.32 million in revenue in 2025. Its work combines a social mission with products, customers and everyday commercial activity.

Enterprises like these contribute to recovery through jobs, services and local economic activity. Access to appropriate financing and experienced partners can help them reach more people and strengthen their operations.

USVF also combines grants with repayable support, allowing returned funds to finance further enterprise development. At the time of the panel, Alena reported that the fund’s repayable capital had completed three reinvestment cycles, with a 100% repayment rate so far. This experience informs our work on financing instruments suited to Ukrainian social enterprises, alongside careful assessment and ongoing support for each team.

Ukraine’s need for military and humanitarian support remains critical. At the same time, communities need functioning businesses, rehabilitation services, employment opportunities and local production throughout the war. Financing smaller enterprises is part of meeting those needs today.

European partners can contribute capital, expertise and access to markets. Ukrainian teams bring practical experience in developing solutions under exceptionally difficult conditions. In rehabilitation, mental health, inclusive employment and community services, this cooperation can support solutions with relevance beyond Ukraine.

The panel also demonstrated the importance of relationships between individuals and organisations willing to take the first step. Alena shared that USVF, Elemér Eszter and Hungarian partners are exploring the possibility of developing a new impact investment fund focused on Ukraine. This is an early-stage discussion, grounded in the need to expand financing opportunities for Ukrainian businesses.

We thank Elemér Eszter and Nora Bogsch for the invitation and warm welcome extended to our team, and the ImpactCEE team and our partners at Impact Ventures for bringing this community together. We are grateful for their attention to Ukraine’s experience and their willingness to share expertise, open professional networks and work with us on financing opportunities for Ukrainian enterprises.