Ukraine Sees 29,000 New Businesses in 2025, Led by Trade and IT

Business Formation Trends in Ukraine for 2025

According to ХВИЛЯ: In 2025, a total of 28,913 new companies were registered in Ukraine, while 2,871 ceased operations. The capital city of Kyiv, along with the Lviv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kyiv, and Odesa regions, recorded the highest registration activity. The quarterly breakdown of new business openings was as follows:

• 6.5 thousand in the first quarter
• 7.6 thousand in the third quarter
• 7.6 thousand in the fourth quarter

Business creation accelerated in the second half of the year, surpassing 2024 levels. The year-end growth in registrations reached 25%.

Company Closures and Leading Sectors

The fourth quarter of 2025 saw a 37.6% increase in company liquidations compared to the same period in 2024. However, the overall number of new companies for the year was ten times greater than the number that closed. This data provides insight into the resilience of the Ukrainian economy amidst ongoing challenges.

Kyiv was the leading hub for new registrations with over 10.4 thousand new enterprises. The Lviv region registered 2.5 thousand companies, Dnipropetrovsk 2.3 thousand, the Kyiv region 1.9 thousand, and Odesa 1.8 thousand.

The most popular sectors for new businesses were:

• Wholesale trade – 3.5 thousand companies
• IT sector – 3.1 thousand new enterprises
• Real estate operations – 2.6 thousand companies
• Transport and logistics – 2.2 thousand companies
• Construction – 2.1 thousand companies

The Kherson, Sumy, and Chernihiv regions saw the lowest levels of new business registration activity.

The surge in new companies signals a recovery in entrepreneurial activity, particularly given the economic headwinds. Despite the rise in closures, the robust pace of new business formation points to underlying optimism within the business community, especially in the capital and key regional centers. The dominance of the IT sector and wholesale trade reflects modern economic trends where digitalization and e-commerce are gaining significant traction.