The SSU has exposed the sanctioned oligarch Pavlo Fuks on large-scale financial fraud with Ukrainian strategic enterprises and systemic tax evasion.

The SSU ascertained that since 2018 Fuks had illegally seized assets of Ukrainian companies worth over UAH 100 bln (USD 2.7 bln).

According to the investigation, the oligarch’s holding was looking for enterprises in Ukraine’s energy, machine-building and metallurgical industries that had loans from bankrupt banks.

The dealers bought ‘credit obligations’ of these entities from banking institutions for nothing, which allowed them to interfere in their business activities.

The assets of Ukrainian factories and infrastructure facilities were then frozen, their operations blocked, or they were forced into bankruptcy.

Fuks and his associates thoroughly concealed the sources of funding for the transactions and the real ‘customers’ through complex financial fraud. For this purpose, they used over 100 affiliated commercial entities.

In the course of these activities, the fraudsters received excessive profits and evaded taxes. For example, just one of these transactions resulted in almost UAH 100 mln (USD 2.7 mln) in losses to the state.

Based on the evidence collected, Fuks and the holding’s two top managers were served a notice of suspicion under Articles 27.3, 212.3 of the CCU (tax evasion).

Within the criminal proceeding, corporate rights and accounts of the involved 101 companies, the rights to claim over 1,600 repurchased loans, over 240 real estate objects and vehicles of the fraudsters have been seized. Some of the assets have already been transferred to the Assent Recovery and Management Agency of Ukraine (ARMA).

The SSU carried out the investigation under the procedural supervision of the Prosecutor General’s Office.