Zhevago and Finance and Credit Bank: Court Upholds Freeze on Assets
29 May 11:13
The Northern Commercial Court of Appeals has upheld the legality of the seizure of Ukrainian assets belonging to Konstantin Zhevago, the former owner of JSC “Bank “Finance and Credit.” This action was taken to secure a claim filed by the Deposit Guarantee Fund against the businessman for nearly 46 billion hryvnia.
This was reported by the press service of the Deposit Guarantee Fund, according to "Komersant Ukrainian"
The decision was issued on May 20, 2026, in case No. 910/268/23.
The Fund emphasizes that the seizure of assets is necessary to preserve the property, which can be used to compensate the bank and its creditors in the event of a favorable court ruling.
Court upholds seizure of Zhevago’s assets
The Northern Commercial Court of Appeal has once again confirmed the legality of the seizure of Konstantin Zhevago’s Ukrainian assets, initiated by the Deposit Guarantee Fund.
The Fund is seeking compensation for losses that, in its view, were incurred by the bank “Finance and Credit” and its creditors. The amount of the claim is nearly 46 billion UAH.
The Fund notes that the court took into account the evidence provided that the defendant failed to comply with legal requirements to provide information about his assets and liabilities.
This refers to Article 52 of the Law of Ukraine “On the Deposit Guarantee System for Individuals,” which obligates the managers, owners of significant stakes, and ultimate beneficial owners of an insolvent bank to provide information about all property belonging to them at the Fund’s request.
Which assets remain under seizure
According to the Deposit Guarantee Fund, the Ukrainian assets of the former owner of Finance and Credit Bank remain under seizure as of today.
Specifically, this concerns corporate rights which, according to the Fund, are indirectly owned by Kostyantyn Zhevago through Ferrexpo AG:
- a 50.3% stake in the authorized capital of Poltava Mining and Processing Plant PJSC;
- a 50.3% stake in the authorized capital of Yeristivsky Mining and Processing Plant LLC;
- a 50.3% stake in the authorized capital of Bilanivsky Mining and Processing Plant LLC.
It is these assets that could become the source of future recovery if the court grants the Fund’s claim.
READ ALSO: Zhevago challenges the seizure of assets worth 46 billion UAH: what the court decided
The Fund explained why it is important to preserve the assets
Deputy Director-Administrator of the Deposit Guarantee Fund Viktor Novikov emphasized that in cases against individuals associated with banks, preserving assets is one of the key tasks.
“In lawsuits against related parties, preserving assets is one of the most important areas of work. Due to the complexity of this category of cases, their consideration drags on for years, cases are repeatedly sent back to lower courts, and former bank owners go to great lengths to hide assets and refuse to return anything to creditors even in the event of a court ruling ordering compensation for losses,” Novikov noted.
According to him, the court’s decision allows for the protection of assets so that in the future, following relevant court rulings, they can be seized for the benefit of the bank’s creditors.
“Therefore, we welcome the ruling, which allows for the protection of assets so that in the future, following the relevant court rulings, they can be recovered for the benefit of the bank’s creditors,” the Fund’s representative added.
What is the case about
The Deposit Guarantee Fund filed a lawsuit with the Commercial Court of Kyiv against Kostyantyn Zhevago on January 4, 2023.
The lawsuit concerns compensation for losses incurred by the bank “Finansy i Kredit” and its creditors in the amount of nearly 46 billion hryvnias.
According to the Fund, the losses were caused by the fraudulent withdrawal of funds from the bank. Specifically, the Fund cites the systematic lending to companies affiliated with Zhevago without adequate collateral and the transfer of loan funds to non-resident companies, which, according to the Fund, were also linked to the businessman.
These companies did not repay the loans they received, and most of them subsequently became insolvent.
The English Court and the Ukrainian Proceedings
The Fund’s claim is based on materials, documents, and evidence gathered during the preparation and hearing of the case in the High Court of England and Wales.
In that case, the English court found that there were sufficient grounds for a worldwide freeze of Konstantin Zhevago’s assets. At the same time, the court concluded that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the case on its merits, as it required the application of Ukrainian law.
Following this, on January 4, 2023, the Deposit Guarantee Fund filed a lawsuit with the Commercial Court of Kyiv, and on March 1, 2023, initiated the freezing of Zhevago’s assets.
As of today, Case No. 910/268/23 is pending before the court of first instance.
Who is Kostyantyn Zhevago
Konstantin Zhevago is a Ukrainian businessman and politician who was among the country’s wealthiest individuals.
According to the Chesno movement , Konstantin Zhevago is a former member of the Verkhovna Rada of the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th convocations. He is a subject of anti-corruption investigations regarding tax and abuse of power.
In 2026, Zhevago was charged in France in a case involving the embezzlement of over half a billion hryvnias from the “Finance and Credit” bank, which belonged to the former MP himself.
In July 2025, law enforcement officials reported that they had uncovered a large-scale pharmaceutical scheme involving Zhevago, who organized the production and distribution of Ukrainian medicines on the territory of the Russian Federation.
According to the investigation, Zhevago personally oversaw the transfer of rights and production technologies from Ukrainian companies. As a result, a number of medical products under the trademarks of Ukrainian companies became officially registered in Russia.
In 2025, the National Security and Defense Council imposed personal sanctions against Zhevago. Thesesanctions included the revocation of state awards, the freezing of assets, and restrictions on trade and the transfer of capital out of Ukraine.
In 2023, Zhevago was implicated in the case involving the arrest of Supreme Court Chief Justice Vsevolod Knyazev. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) established that Knyazev had received a $3 million bribe from individuals who lobbied for a court ruling in favor of Kostyantyn Zhevago.
That same year, a Kyiv.Postinvestigative report found that the volume of Zhevago’s companies’ transactions with Russia between 2017 and 2022 exceeded 7.5 billion hryvnias. Although Zhevago himself has always denied doing business with Russia.
In 2022, Zhevago was detained in Courchevel, France, at the request of the State Bureau of Investigation (DBR). Subsequently, a local court issued an extradition arrest warrant for the businessman. Zhevago was notified of his status as a suspect in criminal offenses. However, the court hearings were frequently postponed, and a few months later, Zhevago posted bail of one million euros and was released from custody. He is prohibited from leaving mainland France and must report regularly to the police station.
Additionally, the Economic Security Bureau opened criminal proceedings against Zhevago’s company, which is suspected of tax evasion amounting to 94.6 million hryvnias.
At the end of the year, the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) conducted searches at enterprises linked to Zhevago. The reason was to verify information regarding Zhevago’s and other individuals under his control’s involvement in collaborationist activities (Part 4 of Article 111-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine), specifically the operation of his enterprises in the interests of Russia.
In 2021, Interpol issued an international arrest warrant for Kostyantyn Zhevago in connection with the embezzlement of $113 million.
That year, he was the third-richest Ukrainian according to Forbes.ua. His total net worth was $2.4 billion.
In 2019, he ran for the 9th convocation of the Verkhovna Rada in constituency No. 150 (Poltava Oblast) as an independent candidate, but lost.
Forbes magazine estimated Zhevago’s fortune at approximately $1.5 billion, making him the second-richest Ukrainian after Rinat Akhmetov.
That same year, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine ( ) opened a criminal investigation against Zhevago regarding his possible involvement in the embezzlement of 2.5 billion hryvnias. According to an audit by the Deposit Guarantee Fund, Zhevago and another top manager of the “Finance and Credit” bank issued several knowingly bad loans totaling nearly 5 billion hryvnia in order to embezzle the funds. A Kyiv court ruled to recover 1.5 billion hryvnia from Zhevago in favor of the National Bank of Ukraine.
At the end of the year, Zhevago was placed on an international wanted list due to his systematic failure to appear for questioning by the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) in a criminal case in which the businessman and politician was a suspect. A court decision on the compulsory recovery of funds also came into effect.
In addition, the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) notified Zhevago of his status as a suspect for providing false information in his income declaration.
In 2014, he was elected as a People’s Deputy of the Verkhovna Rada of the 8th convocation in constituency No. 150 (Poltava Oblast) as an independent candidate, unaffiliated with any faction. He is a member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Legal Policy and Justice.
He was frequently absent from plenary sessions and committee meetings in the Verkhovna Rada of the 8th convocation.
In 2012, he was elected a People’s Deputy of the 7th convocation as an independent candidate in constituency No. 150 and was not affiliated with any faction.
From 2006 to 2012, he served as a People’s Deputy in the 5th and 6th convocations representing the “Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc.” Both times, he was No. 62 on the list and was unaffiliated.
He owns 51% of the shares in Ferrexpo AG (a group of companies whose main assets are several iron ore producers in the Poltava region of Ukraine).
In 1998 and 2002, he was elected a member of the Verkhovna Rada of the 3rd and 4th convocations in constituencies No. 149 and No. 150, respectively (Poltava region). Both times, he was an independent candidate.
From 1996 to 1998, he served as chairman of the board of the “Finance and Credit” Financial and Industrial Group, deputy chairman of the board of JSC “Poltava Mining and Processing Plant,” and a member of the supervisory board of JSC “Ukrnafta.” From 1993 to 1995, he served as the financial director of the closed joint-stock company “Finance and Credit.”
He is the owner of the “Vorskla” football club.
He graduated from the Kyiv National Economic University with a degree in “Accounting and Analysis of Foreign Economic Activity.” He holds a Ph.D. in Economics.
He was born on January 7, 1974, in the village of Iultin, Russian Federation.
Why the case is important for the bank’s creditors
Bank “Finance and Credit” was taken off the market in 2015. For creditors and depositors, the issue of recovering funds remains one of the key concerns.
The Deposit Insurance Fund is attempting to recover losses from the bank’s former owner, as it believes that the actions of related parties led to losses for the bank and its creditors.
Asset seizure in such cases is a crucial mechanism for securing a claim. Without it, there is a risk that by the time of the final court decision, the assets may have been disposed of, re-registered, or removed from potential recovery.
What’s Next
Despite the appellate court’s decision regarding the seizure of assets, the case itself regarding the recovery of nearly 46 billion UAH is still pending in the court of first instance.
The court has not yet issued a final decision on compensation for the losses of Bank “Finansy i Kredit” and its creditors.
However, the current ruling by the appellate court allows the Fund to maintain the seizure of assets while the case is pending.
