[Last updated: 1 February 2026, unless otherwise noted]
The Ukrainian securities market operates under the significant challenges posed by the ongoing full-scale war, which has increased volatility, limited foreign investor participation, and shifted much activity toward government bonds (commonly known as OVDPs) and other fixed-income instruments. Despite these difficulties, the market has demonstrated notable resilience: trading volumes on the leading platform – the PFTS Stock Exchange (the PTFS) increased substantially in 2025, reaching approximately UAH845 billion (around US$19.87 billion), a 63% increase compared to the previous year, reflecting gradual adaptation and general investor interest.
The PFTS, established in 1997, is the oldest and currently the leading organized securities market in Ukraine. In 2025, the total trading volume on the PFTS accounted for 78% of the total securities trading volume in Ukraine. In the present market environment, PFTS functions as the primary local market operator for trading in Ukrainian financial instruments. Its core activities focus on government bonds, corporate bonds, repo transactions, and selected derivative contracts.
In 1997, the PFTS began calculating the PFTS Index, the principal benchmark of the Ukrainian equities market that has been used since 1 October 1997. The PFTS Index tracks the prices of the most liquid shares of leading Ukrainian issuers and is widely recognized both domestically and internationally as the key indicator of the Ukrainian stock market performance. PFTS is a member of the World Federation of Exchanges’ correspondent network and the International Association of Exchanges.
Admission of securities to trading on the PFTS is subject to the rules of the exchange and general regulatory oversight by the National Securities and Stock Market Commission of Ukraine (the NSSMC). Foreign issuers may seek admission of their securities for trading in Ukraine only upon obtaining a permit from the NSSMC and only as a secondary admission, as primary listing of foreign securities is not permitted under Ukrainian law.
Additionally, the Stock Exchange "Perspektyva" (Perspektyva SE, together with PFTS, the SEs) functions as another organized trading venue in Ukraine, contributing to the diversity of the exchange infrastructure and supporting trading in various financial instruments.
Due to the full-scale military invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, which began on 24 February 2022, martial law has been introduced in Ukraine, and as a result, special legislation has been enacted in various areas, including in capital markets. Currently, the NSSMC prohibits professional capital market participants (such as Ukrainian operators of organized markets (SEs), securities traders (investment firms) etc.) from establishing business relations and/or carrying out any transactions with, or for the benefit of, and/or making any distributions to, among others, persons related to the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus. Further, there are also currency control requirements established by the National Bank of Ukraine (the NBU) which may need to be met to enable securities to be traded at the SEs.