Page 43 - UKRRptFeb20
P. 43
8.1.3 Banks specific issues
Radical cleanup of the nation’s three big state-owned banks during the Zelenskiy government is envisioned in a strategy document posted on the National Bank of Ukraine website. Nonperforming loans are to drop from 53% today to 10% in 2024. The state banks’ share of banking assets is to drop from 60% today to 25%. The level of public confidence in the financial system is to increase from 10% today to 60% in 2024.
UkrPoshta will begin to deliver pensions and other payouts in 2020,
according to a Facebook post by Minister of Infrastructure Vladislav Krykliy. “Over 4mn Ukrainians, in particular, over 800,000 people with disabilities receive pensions and cash payments through Ukrposhta. Thanks to today's government decision, Ukrposhta will deliver pensions and subsidies in 2020.” UkrPoshta, a state-owned enterprise, says it offers a wide range of services covering 100% of the territory of Ukraine. It has over 11,000 branches and employs more than 30,000 postmen. Since 2017, the company’s revenue has doubled, to $334mn
8.1.4 Bank news
The EU and Ukraine agree to make nationalization of PrivatBank non-reversible, according to a statement after Prime Minister Honcharuk led the Ukraine side of an ‘Association Council’ meeting in Brussels at the end of January. Touching on a point key to EU and IMF aid, the statement reads: “The sides agreed on the importance of irreversibility of reforms in the banking sector, in particular in relation to the nationalization of PrivatBank stressing the importance of bringing to justice those responsible for the large-scale fraud at PrivatBank, and the recovery of assets.”
Kolomoisky floods Ukraine courts with lawsuits against Privatbank.
During December 2019 and early January 2020, different legal entities connected to oligarch Igor Kolomoisky filed almost 285 lawsuits against Privatbank. The lawsuits concern various aspects of nationalization of Privatbank and its loans given to companies associated with Kolomoisky. Presumably, such a "legal" activation of Kolomoisky is related to meddling with existing court disputes between Kolomoisky and Privatbank in Ukraine and the United Kingdom. More details here (in Ukrainian)
Ukraine’s Supreme Court has ruled to deny National Bank of Ukraine’s (NBU) request to foreclose the assets of Gajibey Ltd. related to former Privatbank shareholder, oligarch Igor Kolomoisky, the NBU said on January 22. The assets were pledged under a refinancing loan that Privatbank took from the NBU in October 2014. The regulator believes that it does not agree with the ruling, arguing that its right to foreclose the pledged assets under the refinancing loan is stipulated by the nation's law on the NBU. This law vaguely allows the NBU to withdraw money from a bank's accounts, and foreclose the assets pledged under the loan, once a refinancing loan taken by a bank matures, the NBU said. Meanwhile, other laws stipulate that the pledged assets can be foreclosed in case the borrower fails to repay related loans.
Oschadbank, Ukraine’s second-largest bank, plans to close up to one-quarter of its 2,400 branches in 2020, Baiba Apine, head of the supervisory board, tells FinClub. The cuts are part of a drive by the
43 UKRAINE Country Report February 2020 www.intellinews.com
