Advisors Who Helped Ukraine During Debt Restructuring in 2015 Open Office in Kyiv

To guide international investors and businesses into details of Ukraine’s markets, APCO, a global advisory and advocacy firm, is expanding its European operations with a presence in Kyiv – the company stated it in a press release. 

APCO CEO Brad Staples explained this move with “more demand from Ukrainian corporates to understand and engage with European markets and attract foreign investment.”

He also stated that APCO clients across a variety of sectors are “seeking better insights and more on the ground expertise to navigate Ukraine’s political landscape and growing business opportunities.” 

APCO wants to help future international investors in Ukraine deepen their knowledge of energy, technology, transportation sectors, and agriculture, the company states.

It did not say whether it is going to help Ukraine’s Ministry of Finance. 

It has in the past, leading advocacy and media campaigns for 2014-2016 finance minister Natalie Jaresko during negotiating and communicating a debt-restructuring deal. 

In 2015, Jaresko and the ministry’s team achieved an immediate debt relief of $3.8 billion and has postponed $8.5 billion in debt payments until after 2018. 

APCO supported Jaresko for more than 10 months, working with the media and her PR image and bringing private sector creditors to the negotiation table. 

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Having such a company in Kyiv might be useful for the current finance minister Serhii Marchenko, as Ukraine approaches the deadline in sovereign and commercial debt restructuring negotiations in August-September 2024. 

Sonya Soutus will lead Kyiv’s office, since she has over 30 years of multinational corporate and government relations experience, the press release states. 

Previously, she worked for The Nature’s Bounty Company, Coca-Cola Company, most recently as senior vice president of public affairs and communications for the Coca-Cola North America Business Unit. 

An American of Ukrainian descent, Soutus also helped establish USAID’s first commercial office in Ukraine. 

APCO was initially founded as a consulting subsidiary of the law firm Arnold and Porter, but became an independent majority women-owned company in 2004. Today “APCO” is no longer an abbreviation for a longer name.