The case of former NBU Head Kyrylo Shevchenko is beginning to flesh out. And it is very reminiscent of the good old days of the Soviet Union, or Russia.
In order to imprison Shevchenko, NABU/SAPO officers are looking for someone to testify against him. The scheme has long been known among the security forces. They find the person, threaten them with imprisonment, but at the same time offer a deal with the investigation in exchange for the necessary testimony.
Such a person was found in the case of the former head of the NBU. It was Bohdan Fedorushchenko, a professional financier. Right in the courtroom, Judge Movchan decided to take him into custody, with a possible bail of UAH 6.4 million. Then the prosecutor offered the detainee a choice: to testify or to stay in jail.
The plot of the accusation is scary: there were ‘left-wing’ individual entrepreneurs who were led by puppeteers headed by Shevchenko. Fedorushchenko is asked to tell how exactly this criminal group, which allegedly embezzled funds from a state-owned bank, worked.
This plot sounds a bit ridiculous if you know the typical scheme of many (not to say all) banks to attract so-called VIPs or ‘big guys’.
Every bank needs money to make money. Three groups of VIP clients have the most money. The first is large companies (called corporate clients, or "corps"), whether private or public. The second is local authorities. The third is individuals with large fortunes. It is the VIPs (also called "big guys") who are able to instantly place, say, 10 million or even a billion hryvnias in the bank. You do not need to find 10 thousand physicals with deposits of UAH 1000 each, with a bunch of documents and time spent on each one. That is why managers of many banks are constantly fighting for VIPs. It is profitable.
How rich people are attracted is a separate issue. As a rule, they are guaranteed security and particularly favorable conditions. This is always an individual agreement.
But large corporations and local authorities are more interesting, because a standardized scheme of work is possible. Usually, in such companies or city halls, money is managed by hired clerks. In Ukraine, there is only one (I emphasize this) way to get a large company interested in coming to a bank for servicing. How the agent negotiated with the client is his professional business, not the bank's.
It is these special conditions that are at stake in the case of Kyrylo Shevchenko. In fact, experts writing about this case, including Serhii Fursa, point to this.
So, Fedorushchenko, found by the NABU, was a classic agent for attracting large clients. He brought clients to Ukrgaz and other banks, and in return received a fee. This is also a standard international practice for sales agents.
What is known about Fedorushchenko? Here are some facts. He is a professional banker with over 25 years of experience. He started at Ukreximbank as a regular lender, but later started working with VIPs. He has held various positions at different banks and is currently an independent member of the Supervisory Board of Marfin Bank.
He earned money by helping VIPs get a range of services – Currency, cash and settlement services, safes, loans, deposits. At the same time (and this is important), he helped solve private personal issues of company executives, namely deposits, cards, transfers, safes, servicing relatives, etc. Among his clients are VIPs from Ukrspetsexport, Ukroboronprom, Naftogaz, Energoatom, DTEK, Ukraftodor, Ukrzaliznytsia, Illich Iron and Steel Works, Boryspil and Zhuliany airports, etc. You can imagine what kind of services Fedorushchenko provided them. Usually, this is a typical package called the "Affiliate Program".
It is under this partnership program that Fedorushchenko has been cooperating with Ukrgaz since 2016. At that time, VIPs, frightened by the "bank run," were looking for a bank they can trust. Ukrgas is a state-owned bank, so it is safe. That's why his program took off. Now NABU is talking about a large sum of money allegedly stolen from the bank. Of course, the wording ‘stolen’ indicates that investigators do not understand the nature of what they are investigating. Or they don't want to understand. I think they are calling the money that the affiliate program was supposed to provide ‘embezzlement’. This money is not stolen, it is special terms of cooperation.
I do not know whether Fedorushchenko can be useful to the investigation. He probably brought VIPs and received commissions for this. He probably offered certain conditions on behalf of the bank. Actually, he did not make any decisions within Ukrgaz. But they probably want to hear something like that from him. They threaten to ruin his life for this.
Of course, testimony in Shevchenko’s case will be the end of Fedorushchenko's professional career. Because he will do the worst thing for a banker - he will disclose his client's secret. The consequence of such an action is a wolf's ticket for the rest of your life. You may be law-abiding, but no bank will trust you with its clients, especially VIPs.
But Fedorushchenko is the right person to put pressure on. He has four children, probably doesn't have a lot of money, he has to earn money. So, the prospect of imprisonment (according to the prosecutor) is scary. The threats (which are obvious) are hitting the right target. Moralists, it's your turn.
In general, the court's decision on Fedorushchenko makes a strange impression. It seems that NABU/SAPO are doing everything that law enforcement agencies usually do. At the same time, Shevchenko's case has long since turned political.
Because it is one thing to investigate the partnership program of Ukrgaz since 2016. It is another thing to keep this case in a drawer and activate it as if on command from above to force Shevchenko to resign as Head of the NBU. Then began repressions against people of his team from the NBU, Ukrgaz and partly Ukrexim, bad management practices of the Oschad Bank led by Andrii Pyshnyi, etc.
So don't be surprised if the Fedorushchenko’s case develops in a strange way. Anything is possible when the NABU has become a pocket body of the President's Office. I think there is no doubt about this after the cases of Pyvovarskyi, Koboliev and Dykhne, as well as after the election of the new leadership of the agency.
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