ALTERNATIVE DIGITAL FINANCE AS A DRIVER OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP RECOVERY IN UKRAINE: TRANSFORMATION OF MODELS UNDER WAR CONDITIONS
Abstract
The article investigates the role of alternative digital finance in restoring entrepreneurial activity in Ukraine under conditions of war and post-war transformation. The relevance of the topic is determined by the dysfunction of traditional credit channels caused by the elevated key policy rate of the National Bank of Ukraine, the increase in risk premiums for frontline regions, and the destruction of productive assets, which collectively pushed a significant share of small and medium enterprises beyond the reach of formal banking finance. The aim of the study is to conceptualize a phase-based model of the transformation of alternative digital finance as a driver of entrepreneurship recovery in Ukraine during the war and post-war reconstruction. The methodological framework combines comparative analysis of global benchmarks published by the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, secondary data from Ukrainian industry reviews and platforms, and conceptual generalization based on the digital inclusive finance theory. The classification of alternative finance instruments includes donation-based, reward-based, equity-based, and debt-based crowdfunding, peer-to-peer lending, invoice trading, and tokenization. The main result is the formulation of a three-phase model that distinguishes the crisis phase (2022-2023), characterized by the dominance of donation-based crowdfunding and the function of resilience; the stabilization phase (2023-2026), defined by the growth of reward-based crowdfunding for SMEs and the function of adaptation; and the recovery phase (2026+), associated with equity crowdfunding, tokenization, and the function of growth. The model extends the theoretical framework of digital inclusive finance from a static inclusion-oriented to a dynamic resilience-oriented description of functions. The practical value lies in policy recommendations regarding the harmonization of Ukrainian crowdfunding legislation with the European Crowdfunding Service Providers Regulation (EU) 2020/1503, the integration of crowdfunding services into the Diia.Business infrastructure, and the development of incentives for diaspora investment capital.
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