Luhansk
Background
Luhansk is a city in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine and the administrative center of the surrounding Luhansk Oblast. It is known in Ukrainian as Луганськ and in Russian as Луганск, and in 2022 its population was estimated at 397,677, making it the 12th-largest city in Ukraine. The city lies in an area that has been shaped by the wider conflict in eastern Ukraine since 2014.
The city has had major political and administrative significance because it served as the oblast center before pro-Russian separatists took control in 2014. After that takeover, it became the capital of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic, which altered the governance structure of the area. For Ukraine, the loss of control over Luhansk made it one of the key contested cities in the war in Donbas, while for Russia and the separatist authorities it became a central administrative and symbolic location.
After 2014, the Ukrainian administration for Luhansk Oblast was moved to Sievierodonetsk, reflecting the change in control on the ground. In 2022, Sievierodonetsk was captured by Russia, and later in that year Luhansk Oblast was annexed by Russia. Recent references also indicate continued Russian state and commercial presence in the wider area, including banking operations in Luhansk since 2022, underscoring its ongoing relevance in the post-2022 territorial and administrative situation.
Timeline
PSB Bank had opened branches in Luhansk as part of its network across Russia’s four annexed Ukrainian territories.
Meeting of Mikhail Mishustin with the Chairman of PSB Bank PJSC Pyotr FradkovPSB Bank’s branch network in Luhansk formed part of the banking presence that covered more than 50% of the credit portfolio in those territories.
Meeting of Mikhail Mishustin with the Chairman of PSB Bank PJSC Pyotr Fradkov
Documents
Meeting of Mikhail Mishustin with the Chairman of PSB Bank PJSC Pyotr Fradkov
Mishustin met with PSB Bank chief Fradkov, who reported 9 trillion rubles in assets for 2025 and 463 branches across Russia's four annexed Ukrainian territories, covering over 50% of the banking sector's credit portfolio there.