PrivatBank defeats attempt by former owners to appeal USD 3 billion judgment

PrivatBank today successfully thwarted an attempt by its former owners, Ihor Kolomoiskyi and Hennadii Boholiubov, to appeal a court ruling issued against them in July 2025.

This is stated in a press release from the bank, the Ukrainian News agency reports.

Accordingly, the decision to recover over USD 3 billion from Mr. Kolomoiskyi and Mr. Boholiubov in favor of PrivatBank in the form of damages, interest, and legal costs remains in force.

PrivatBank welcomes the decision of the Court of Appeal, which upheld the original ruling of the High Court of England and Wales that Messrs. Kolomoiskyi and Boholiubov committed large-scale fraud against the Bank and must compensate it for the losses incurred. In particular, the Court of Appeal rejected the former owners’ arguments that they had returned the misappropriated funds using proceeds obtained through subsequent fraudulent acts against the Bank.

In 2017, the Bank obtained a court order for a worldwide attachment of the defendants’ assets. The Bank will now seek enforcement of the judgment on the merits regarding such assets in order to obtain compensation for the Bank and, accordingly, for its shareholder—the Government of Ukraine.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, on November 24, the deadline set by the High Court of England for voluntary compliance with the November 10, 2025, ruling expired; under that ruling, Ihor Kolomoiskyi and Hennadii Boholiubov are required to pay PrivatBank over USD 3 billion to cover damages and interest accrued prior to the ruling.

On October 15, 2019, the state-owned PrivatBank won its case in the London Court of Appeal in a dispute with former owners Ihor Kolomoiskyi and Hennadii Boholiubov.

The Cabinet of Ministers approved the decision for the state to acquire a stake in PrivatBank on December 18, 2016.

PrivatBank’s transfer to state ownership took place in accordance with Article 411 of the Law “On the Deposit Guarantee System for Individuals.”

This decision helped avert systemic risks to the banking sector and ensured the preservation of financial stability in the country.