Mechanisms for attracting foreign investment for the digitalization of the real economy sector of Ukraine: from project finance to venture models.
Abstract
The article examines the theoretical and practical foundations of attracting foreign investment for the digitalization of the real economy sector of Ukraine – industry, energy, agriculture, transport, and logistics. It is established that the practice of attracting foreign capital in Ukraine has historically gravitated toward two poles – large-scale debt-based project financing of infrastructure by international financial institutions, and venture financing of IT startups – while the digitalization of non-technology enterprises in the real sector remains insufficiently supported by capital. The article considers the full spectrum of mechanisms for attracting foreign capital for digitalization purposes – from debt-based project finance, through guarantee-and-grant risk-sharing instruments and public-private partnership, to corporate and independent venture capital. It is demonstrated that these mechanisms form a single investment continuum, differentiated by the ratio of debt to equity capital, the level of risk and return, and the stage of technological maturity of the project. Based on current statistical data from the National Bank of Ukraine, the EBRD, the Ministry of Digital Transformation, and venture market analytics for 2025–2026, the current scale of application of each link of the continuum is characterized: the EBRD’s portfolio in Ukraine exceeded EUR 23.88 billion, venture investment in the technology sector reached USD 498 million, the number of residents under the Diia City special legal regime doubled to 3,707 companies, and net foreign direct investment inflows amounted to USD 1.82 billion. It is substantiated that the choice of financing mechanism for a digital project should be determined not by the sectoral classification of the enterprise but by the nature of the project itself, and that combining guarantee-and-grant and venture instruments within blended structures is a promising direction for financing the digitalization of non-technology enterprises in Ukraine’s real economy sector.