Kyiv receives $5 B tranche from IMF

KYIV – Ukraine says it has received the first $5 billion tranche of an International Monetary Fund bailout loan for its strained economy. The Finance Ministry said in a statement on March 13 that $2.2 billion will be put in government accounts and the rest go to the central bank to help stabilize the falling national currency, the hryvnia. The $5 billion tranche is the first part of a four-year, $17.5 billion IMF package. The IMF loan is designed to unlock other credits for Ukraine from other lenders, eventually allowing Kyiv to receive a total financial package worth some $40 billion. Ukrainian Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko said talks would start on March 13 with Kyiv’s creditors on restructuring Ukraine’s debt. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by Agence France-Presse and Reuters)