At the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdansk, SCM joined the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council, the Atlantic Council and our energy company DTEK for a breakfast roundtable on investment in Ukraine now and after the war. Speaking for SCM, Jock Mendoza-Wilson, our Director of International and Investor Relations, set out why recovery is already under way, led by the domestic and international investors active in the country today. This is the story of Ukraine's economic first responders and the dynamic that makes them work.
Who are Ukraine's economic first responders?
They are the companies already operating in Ukraine — domestic businesses and the international investors who chose to stay and invest through the war. Across energy, agriculture, critical minerals, technology, construction materials and defence, they accept the risk and act on the opportunity. As Jock Mendoza-Wilson told the roundtable, these are the businesses that will form the engine of Ukraine's earliest recovery, rather than waiting for the war to end or for external programmes to begin.
How is SCM financing recovery now?
Our shareholder Rinat Akhmetov is financing recovery today, not after the war. SCM companies are investing to restore electricity, heat, jobs and economic resilience while the fighting continues. Where russia destroys, Ukrainian private business rebuilds — modernising enterprises, restoring damaged assets and keeping people in work through difficult winters.
Why does the dynamic between domestic and international investors matter?
Both groups are already present, and the relationship between them is what drives momentum. Investors with experience of Ukraine can move quickly, realising projects that deliver results in the early period after a ceasefire. Those early results — employment, tax revenue and a credible growth story — build the confidence that draws in international investors not yet active in the market. This is the virtuous cycle: domestic and established international investors create the success story, and that success story attracts the next wave of capital to sustain growth into the medium and long term.
What do these investors need to succeed?
Speed depends on the right support. To keep projects moving in the immediate period after a ceasefire, first responders need rapid access to finance and to political risk insurance. The roundtable in Gdansk explored how to innovate on existing financing mechanisms and bring in new investment now, so that the businesses already rebuilding Ukraine can scale their efforts and close the gap between today's work and a broader post-war recovery.
