The Security Service of Ukraine and the Office of the Prosecutor General have documented further criminal activity by the former beneficial owner of one of Ukraine’s largest banks.

According to the investigation, in 2014 he and individuals associated with him illegally appropriated over UAH 100 million belonging to a financial institution under their control.

The financial scheme involved withdrawing credit resources and disguising their subsequent movement as legitimate financial transactions.

The controlled companies received loans from the bank without adequate collateral or a real business purpose. Subsequently, these assets passed through a series of legal entities and individuals, creating the appearance of normal financial circulation.

The prosecution asserts that certain assets were misappropriated and routed to the organisers’ personal accounts under the guise of fulfilling contractual obligations. Specifically, in December 2014, hundreds of millions of Hryvnia were transferred to the suspect’s personal account from a company under his control.

It has been established that, as a result of these actions, the bank suffered losses amounting to over UAH 100 million (USD 2.2 mln). The exact amount is being determined by the pre-trial investigation.

According to preliminary data, this sum originated from the bank’s credit resources, utilised in a so-called ‘re-lending’ scheme via a chain of controlled companies.

The investigation has revealed that bank officials and managers of controlled enterprises, as well as other legal entities and individuals, facilitated the transfer of assets and the documentation of transactions.

SSU investigators and prosecutors from the Office of the Prosecutor General have notified the former beneficial owner of one of Ukraine’s largest banks of suspicion under Article 190.4 of the CCU (as amended by the Law of 15 April 2008), for the fraudulent appropriation of another person’s property on an especially large scale as part of an organised group.

The crime is punishable by imprisonment for up to 12 years.

The pre-trial investigation is ongoing.

Under Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court in accordance with the law.