06 January 2024, Saturday, 14:27 329

Holding of businessman Fridman, who is under sanctions, accused Kyiv of raiding and demanded USD 1 billion

Editor: Tetiana Herasimova

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ABH holding, registered in Luxembourg, owned by businessmen Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven, filed a lawsuit against the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) against Ukraine in the amount of more than USD 1 billion. The reason for the lawsuit was the nationalization of Sense Bank (formerly Alfa-Bank Ukraine) by the Ukrainian government, according to the pro-kremlin agency RBC.

"Combining methods of corporate raiding and military speculation, the Ukrainian authorities illegally took the bank from its legal owners, beneficiaries and shareholders, including UniCredit Bank and The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research," ABH said.

The lawsuit details Ukraine's actions, which the holding considers "arbitrary, disproportionate, unreasonable and discriminatory."

The holding expressed doubts about whether Western countries would support justice against the "corrupt regime" of Ukraine, or provide an opportunity for international justice. ABH also announced its intention to record cases of "black PR by Ukraine" to counter the lawsuit.

Sense Bank was nationalized by Ukraine in the summer of 2023: the state acquired it for a symbolic amount of 1 hryvnia. The reason for the nationalization was the ties of Fridman and Aven with russia, as well as the sanctions acting against them. According to the Ukrainian authorities, the "owners of direct participation" in Sense Bank are ABH Holdings SA and ABH Ukraine Limited. Sanctions were imposed against them, including the blocking of assets and the prohibition of withdrawal of funds. Fridman, Aven and Andrei Kosogov were recognized as "mediated participants." For the summer of 2022, they were the bank's largest shareholders.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, in October 2022, Fridman himself offered to give the bank's shares to the state or another shareholder. Alternatively, Fridman noted in a letter to the head of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) Andrii Pyshnyi, it was possible to capitalize the bank for USD 1 billion at the expense of funds frozen due to sanctions.