Ukraine’s agricultural sector traditionally ranks among the top three most investment-attractive industries in the country and remains one of the key drivers of the mergers and acquisitions market. By the end of 2025, excluding the agro-processing segment, 18 M&A transactions were recorded in primary agriculture with an aggregate value of approximately $167 million, confirming the sector’s relative resilience despite the wartime economy and elevated risks.
The vast majority of transactions in 2025 were executed with the participation of Ukrainian capital, while the market also recorded a number of deals involving the exit of foreign investors from agricultural assets in Ukraine.
Largest Agricultural (Primary Farming) Deals in Ukraine in 2025
| Deal Asset | Seller | Buyer | Deal Value ($ mln)* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land bank — 17,000 ha (Ternopil and Rivne regions) | Agro-Express-Service LLC (Serhii Kostiuchko) | OKKO Group (Vitalii Antonov) | 30.0 |
| GLUKHIV-AGROINVEST LLC (17,000 ha) | NCH Capital (Agroprosperis Group) | Krolevets Feed Mill LLC | 25.0 |
| Kairos-Holding LLC (16,600 ha) | Bohdan Kuspis, Ivan Kotsio | OKKO Group / Vi.An Holding Limited (Vitalii Antonov) | 20.0 |
| Zoria Private Agricultural Lease Enterprise (7,500 ha) | Agropodservice (George Rohr, Maurice Tabashnik) | Agroton / Agroton Public Limited (Cyprus) | 17.0 |
| Agricultural company (Kyiv region), 4,800 ha | n/a | Serhii Spodin | 13.0 |
| Borshchivska Agricultural Company LLC (5,500 ha) | Ivan Kotsio, Bohdan Kuspis | OKKO Group / Vi.An Holding Limited (Vitalii Antonov) | 8.0 |
| Podolivska AF (6,600 ha) | NOVAAGRO (Serhii Polumysnyi) | ADP-AGRO LLC (Oleksandr Katsuba) | 6.0 |
| Agroceton (3,500 ha) | Onur Group | Zhovkva Poultry Breeding Enterprise / Exim Food LLC (Myron Ostapchak) | 5.3 |
| Veres LLC (11,500 ha) | Lemfonia Holdings Limited (Oleh Pavlov) | Anatolii Dietochka | n/a |
| Belarus LLC (4,000 ha) | Fozzy Group, Volodymyr Kostelman | Agrodim Lider LLC | n/a |
* Due to limited public disclosure and low transparency of a significant share of transactions, some deal data are not officially confirmed and are based on expert estimates and market assumptions.
Investment Focus and Demand Structure
Investment activity throughout the year was concentrated primarily on control over land banks. Despite wartime, regulatory, and currency restrictions, the agricultural sector continues to be perceived by investors as a strategic, export-oriented industry capable of generating stable foreign-currency revenues and benefiting from predictable global demand.
In 2025, a significant role was played by transactions aimed at asset consolidation, optimization of operating models, and vertical integration. Investors focused on improving operational efficiency, reducing costs, and strengthening control over value chains — from raw material production to storage, logistics, and processing.
Regional Deal Structure and Pricing Benchmarks
One of the defining features of 2025 was the emergence of a substantial number of offers to sell agricultural companies and land banks in frontline regions, primarily in the Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Dnipropetrovsk regions. For some owners, these sales were forced decisions driven by security risks, infrastructure destruction, and rising operating costs.
At the same time, the trend toward relocation of agribusinesses to central and western regions of Ukraine intensified. This generated steady demand for agricultural assets in areas with more predictable operating conditions. Investor interest remained particularly strong in regions with favorable climatic conditions and fertile soils, while the limited supply of high-quality assets intensified competition and put upward pressure on prices.
An additional factor was the increase in the cost of land lease rights, reflecting both the scarcity of quality land plots and the overall appreciation of agricultural assets in relatively safer regions. In several western regions of Ukraine, prices for agricultural land lease rights at which parties were willing to close deals approached $3,000 per hectare. Meanwhile, in the chernozem regions of Central and Western Ukraine, most transactions were concluded in the range of $1,500–2,500 per hectare.
Risks and Investor Caution
Investment sentiment in 2025 remained volatile under the influence of climate risks, global agricultural commodity price volatility, and logistics disruptions caused by Russian attacks on port infrastructure. These factors made the market more pragmatic: investors were willing to pay a premium for asset quality and safety, but became significantly more cautious in assessing risks and long-term prospects.
Another constraining factor was the structure of deal settlements. Some agricultural asset owners insisted on payments abroad or the use of foreign jurisdictions for final settlements. For many investors, this created additional regulatory, currency, and compliance risks, complicating transaction closures.
Unrealized Demand and Expectation Gaps
As a result, even where investor interest was confirmed and core economic parameters were agreed, a significant share of negotiations in 2025 failed to reach closing. Key obstacles included disagreements over asset valuation, differing perceptions of future risks, and mismatched strategic time horizons between sellers and buyers.
A notable example was the potential transaction between Kernel and IMC. Despite the buyer receiving approval from the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine, the parties were unable to agree on price and key strategic terms, leading to the termination of negotiations. Similar scenarios were observed in several other transactions, including deals advised by InVenture, some of which were suspended at the final valuation stage.
Conclusion
Ukraine’s agricultural M&A market in 2025 demonstrated resilience and sustained structural investor interest, reaching $163 million despite a challenging macroeconomic and security environment. At the same time, the market remained highly selective: transactions focused on high-quality assets, while the gap between seller expectations and investor risk appetite constrained the number of completed deals. These dynamics are expected to shape the configuration of Ukraine’s agricultural investment market in the medium term.
Read the full study:
“The M&A Market in Ukraine 2025 — Wartime Pressures and the Path to Recovery”
