Who’s given Ukraine most aid – and does it have enough rare earth metals to ‘pay back’ US?

Published

5 months ago

February 26, 2025

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How much have America, Britain and the rest paid Ukraine in aid since the Russian invasion? And do they have any hope of getting money back in return?

These are big questions, and they’re likely to dominate much of the discussion in the coming months as Donald Trump pressurises his Ukrainian counterparts for a deal on ending the war. So let’s go through some of the answers.

First off, the question of who has given the most money to Ukraine rather depends on what you’re counting.

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If you’re looking solely at the amount of military support extended since 2022, the US has provided €64bn, compared with €62bn from European nations (including the UK).

But now include other types of support, such as humanitarian and financial assistance, and European support exceeds American (€132bn in total, compared with €114bn from the US).

Divide Europe into its constituent nations, on the other hand, and none of them individually comes anywhere close to the US quantity of aid.

That being said, simple cash numbers aren’t an especially good measure of a country’s ability to pay.

Look at US support as a percentage of gross domestic product and it comes to 0.5% of GDP. That’s almost precisely the same as the aid from the UK.

Looked at through this prism, it’s other countries which are clearly the most generous: Denmark, Estonia and much of the Baltics providing around 2% of their GDP – a far bigger amount versus their ability to finance it.

Still, compare the aid this time around with previous amounts spent in other conflicts and they are nowhere close.

Lend-Lease during WWII, aid during the Vietnam and Korean Wars, and even the first Gulf War, involved significantly bigger outlays than currently being spent on Ukraine.

That goes not just for the US but also for the UK, Germany and Japan, all of which provided more aid to the Kuwaitis and other affected nations during the first Gulf War.

Even so, it’s clear that the US and others have put significant resources towards Ukraine.

President Trump has been talking recently about recouping $500bn from Ukraine in the form of revenues from mining rare earth metals.

This is, on the face of it, slightly odd. Rare earth metals represent an obscure corner of the periodic table and play a small if important role in electronics and military manufacturing.

The entire market is small – making it essentially implausible that, even if Ukraine suddenly produced the majority of the world’s supply, the president could expect that amount of revenue back in return.

More to the point, while there are a couple of rare earth deposits in Ukraine, they have languished, unexploited, for years. They are so expensive to mine no-one has worked out how to extract the elements and make a profit at the same time.

And even if you presumed they could do, Ukraine would still be a relative minnow in global rare earths production.

Assuming, as one probably should, that Donald Trump didn’t just mean rare earths, but was talking more broadly about “critical minerals” (the two are different things, but let’s not get too pedantic here), there are also one or two other promising mine sites in the country.

There is an old, shuttered alumina plant seized from Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. There is a large lithium resource which could, if all went well, be the single biggest lithium mine in Europe.

Yet even taking this into account, Ukraine would still be a relatively small player in global lithium. Not nothing – but not world changing either. Certainly not enough to generate the hundreds of billions of dollars Mr Trump is seeking.

Then again, Ukraine has other resources at its disposal too: vast seams of coal in the Donbas, large iron ore reserves in the south of the country.

Both of these are in or close to Russian occupied areas – which might, from the Ukrainians’ perspective, actually be the point. Old fashioned as this stuff is, it does actually generate significant revenue. It might be Donald Trump’s best hope for some payback.

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Tesla approves $29bn share award to Elon Musk

Published

19 hours ago

August 4, 2025

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Tesla approves bn share award to Elon Musk

Tesla’s board has signed off a $29bn (£21.8bn) share award to Elon Musk after a court blocked an earlier package worth almost double that sum.

The new award, which amounts to 96 million new shares, is not just about keeping the electric vehicle (EV) firm’s founder in the driving seat as chief executive.

The new stock will also bolster his voting power from a current level of 13%.

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He and other shareholders have long argued that boosting his interest in the company is key to maintaining his focus after a foray into the trappings of political power at Donald Trump‘s side – a relationship that has now turned sour.

Musk is angry at the president’s tax cut and spending plans, known as the big beautiful bill. Tesla has also suffered a sales backlash as a result of Musk’s past association with Mr Trump and role in cutting federal government spending.

The company is currently focused on the roll out of a new cheaper model in a bid to boost flagging sales and challenge steep competition, particularly from China.

The headwinds have been made stronger as the Trump administration has cut support for EVs, with Musk admitting last month that it could lead to a “few rough quarters” for the company.

Tesla is currently running trials of its self-driving software and revenues are not set to reflect the anticipated rollout until late next year.

Musk had been in line for a share award worth over $50bn back in 2018 – the biggest compensation package ever seen globally.

But the board’s decision was voided by a judge in Delaware following a protracted legal fight. There is still a continuing appeal process.

Earlier this year, Tesla said its board had formed a special committee to consider some compensation matters involving Musk, without disclosing details.

The special committee said in the filing on Monday: “While we recognize Elon’s business ventures, interests and other potential demands on his time and attention are extensive and wide-ranging… we are confident that this award will incentivize Elon to remain at Tesla”.

It added that if the Delaware courts fully reinstate the 2018 “performance award”, the new interim grant would either be forfeited or offset to ensure no “double dip”.

The new compensation package is subject to shareholder approval.

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Motor finance operators can breathe big sigh of relief

Published

19 hours ago

August 4, 2025

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Motor finance operators can breathe big sigh of relief

Bank stocks have enjoyed a boost as traders digest the Supreme Court’s ruling on the car finance scandal.

Some of the country’s most exposed lenders, including Lloyds and Close Brothers, saw their share prices jump by 7.55% and 21.62% respectively.

It came after the court delivered a reprieve from a possible £44bn compensation bill.

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Banks will still most likely have to fork out over discretionary commissions – a type of commission for dealers that was linked to how high an interest rate they could get from customers.

The FCA, which banned the practice in 2021, is currently consulting on a redress scheme but the final bill is unlikely to exceed £18bn. Overall, the result has been better than expected for the banks.

Lloyds, which owns the country’s largest car finance provider Black Horse, had set aside £1.2bn to cover compensation payouts.

Following the judgment, the bank said it “currently believes that if there is any change to the provision, it is unlikely to be material in the context of the group”.

The judgment released some of the anxiety that has been weighing over the Bank’s share price.

Jonathan Pierce, banking analyst at Jefferies, said the FCA’s prediction was “consistent with our estimates, and most importantly, we think it largely de-risks Lloyds’ shares from the ‘motor issue'”.

Bank stocks have responded robustly to each twist and turn in this tale, sinking after the Court of Appeal turned against them and jumping (as much as 8% in the case of Close Brothers) when the Supreme Court allowed the appeal hearing.

Concerns about this volatility motivated the Supreme Court to deliver its judgment late in the afternoon so that traders would have time to absorb the news.

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FCA considering compensation scheme over car finance scandal – raising hopes of payouts for motorists

Published

2 days ago

August 3, 2025

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FCA considering compensation scheme over car finance scandal - raising hopes of payouts for motorists

Thousands of motorists who bought cars on finance before 2021 could be set for payouts as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said it will consult on a compensation scheme.

In a statement released on Sunday, the FCA said its review of the past use of motor finance “has shown that many firms were not complying with the law or our disclosure rules that were in force when they sold loans to consumers”.

“Where consumers have lost out, they should be appropriately compensated in an orderly, consistent and efficient way,” the statement continued.

The FCA said it estimates the cost of any scheme, including compensation and administrative costs, to be no lower than £9bn – adding that a total cost of £13.5bn is “more plausible”.

It is unclear how many people could be eligible for a pay-out. The authority estimates most individuals will probably receive less than £950 in compensation.

The consultation will be published by early October and any scheme will be finalised in time for people to start receiving compensation next year.

What motorists should do next

The FCA says you may be affected if you bought a car under a finance scheme, including hire purchase agreements, before 28 January 2021.

Anyone who has already complained does not need to do anything.

The authority added: “Consumers concerned that they were not told about commission, and who think they may have paid too much for the finance, should complain now.”

Its website advises drivers to complain to their finance provider first.

If you’re unhappy with the response, you can then contact the Financial Ombudsman.

The FCA has said any compensation scheme will be easy to participate in, without drivers needing to use a claims management company or law firm.

It has warned motorists that doing so could end up costing you 30% of any compensation in fees.

The announcement comes after the Supreme Court ruled on a separate, but similar, case on Friday.

The court overturned a ruling that would have meant millions of motorists could have been due compensation over “secret” commission payments made to car dealers as part of finance arrangements.

The FCA’s case concerns discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs) – a practice banned in 2021.

Under these arrangements, brokers and dealers increased the amount of interest they earned without telling buyers and received more commission for it. This is said to have then incentivised sellers to maximise interest rates.

In light of the Supreme Court’s judgment, any compensation scheme could also cover non-discretionary commission arrangements, the FCA has said. These arrangements are ones where the buyer’s interest rate did not impact the dealer’s commission.

This is because part of the court’s ruling “makes clear that non-disclosure of other facts relating to the commission can make the relationship [between a salesperson and buyer] unfair,” it said.

It was previously estimated that about 40% of car finance deals included DCAs while 99% involved a commission payment to a broker.

Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the FCA, said: “It is clear that some firms have broken the law and our rules. It’s fair for their customers to be compensated.

“We also want to ensure that the market, relied on by millions each year, can continue to work well and consumers can get a fair deal.”