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also the only producers of cornstarch in Ukraine, controlling 74.3% of the market in 2018 and 96.79% in 2019. Importers were their only competitors in the past several years.
9.2.6 Agriculture corporate news
● Astarta Holding
Ukraine’s leading sugar producer and farmer Astarta (AST PW) increased sugar beet processing by 18% to 1,844 kt in 2020, the company reported on December 23 following the completion of its beet processing season. It increased the production of beet sugar 18% y/y to 266 kt, implying a sugar yield of 14.4% in 2020 (down from 14.5% in last year). At the same time, Astarta decreased its use of natural gas per ton of sugar beet processed 6% y/y to about 22.1 cubic meters. The company’s total sugar production in 2020 reached 339 kt (including that produced from imported sugar cane), or 50% more y/y. The company’s harvest of sugar beets increased 7% y/y to 1,584 kt and harvest yield increased 10% y/y to 47.4 t/ha. Yields of key grains and oilseeds (corn, wheat, soybeans, sunflower and rapeseeds) increased 20%-30% y/y (about 24%, on average) resulting in their total harvest of 970 kt, which is up 21% y/y. In particular, its corn harvest reached 508 kt and corn yield increased 25% to 8.6 t/ha in 2021.
● Other
Gramercy Funds Management LLC, one of the biggest creditors of the large agricultural holding Ukrlandfarming, filed a complaint in a US court under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act against Oleg Bakhmatyuk, Ukrlandfarming owner, Bloomberg reported on December 8. The 102-page lawsuit was filed in the US District Court for the District of Wyoming, targeting Bakhmatyuk and “his main ally,” Wyoming banker Nick Piazza, Bloomberg specified. Ukrlandfarming and its related company Avangardco, Ukraine’s biggest egg producer, have a total debt of $2.3 billion, calculates Concorde Capital. Gramercy has started a separate proceeding in Cyprus, where some of Bakhmatyuk’s assets were transferred. Concorde’s Alexander Paraschiy writes: “Perhaps the attempt to sue in Wyoming, where some Bakhmatyuk-related assets were re-registered recently, could be more successful than trying to foreclose assets via legal battles in Cyprus or Ukraine.”
9.2.7 TMT corporate news
Ukrainian startup Pibox raises $400,000 in Toronto. Ukrainian multimedia startup Pibox was accepted into the latest startup accelerator run by Techstars Toronto and raised $400,000 from Techstars, Adventures Lab, Globalive Capital, 70 Ventures and Presto Ventures. Pibox offers a platform making it easier for teams to work with multimedia files. According to the company's press release, users can leave comments, draw over video or choose parts of a media file with millisecond precision. The startup plans to expand its team and the capabilities of its product. Pibox expects its market to include video and podcast productions, branding agencies, and media industry specialists. The company's clients include Universal Pictures, Sony, the Michigan Technological University and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
74 UKRAINE Country Report January 2022 www.intellinews.com