$2 billion was stolen through a complex loan recycling scheme to move the money through offshore companies

Former owners of Ukraine’s PrivatBank, Ihor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Bogolyubov, have stolen nearly $2 billion from the bank before it was nationalised in 2016, a U.K. court ruled on Wednesday (July 23, 2025)

• The judge said the two used a “highly complex loan recycling scheme” to move the money through offshore companies for their benefit.
• The High Court in London found that both men were responsible for what the judge described as a “fraud of Byzantine complexity.”
• The ruling fully supports the claims brought by PrivatBank. With interest and legal costs, the amount owed is expected to exceed $2 billion.

PrivatBank Scandal (Ukraine)

• PrivatBank is Ukraine’s largest lender, serving more than 18 million customers.
• It was nationalised in 2016 after auditors found massive losses tied to insider lending and fraud.

Key Figures:

• Ihor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Bogolyubov – former owners of PrivatBank.

Scheme:

• Between 2013 and 2016, the duo allegedly embezzled nearly $2 billion from PrivatBank using a loan recycling scheme:
• Issued sham loans to offshore companies they secretly controlled.
• Used fake trade documents to justify transfers.
• Laundered funds through foreign assets and shell firms

Legal Outcome:

• In July 2025, the UK High Court ruled in favour of PrivatBank, calling it a “fraud of Byzantine complexity.”
• The court found both men jointly and severally liable and criticised them for destroying evidence and refusing to testify
• Kolomoisky was detained in Ukraine in 2023 and faces charges of fraud, money laundering, and embezzlement

Reporting on July 30, 2025

• Former owners of Ukraine’s PrivatBank, Ihor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Bogolyubov, have stolen nearly $2 billion from the bank before it was nationalised in 2016, a U.K. court ruled on Wednesday (2025)
• The judge said the two used a “highly complex loan recycling scheme” to move the money through offshore companies for their benefit.
• The High Court in London found that both men were responsible for what the judge described as a “fraud of Byzantine complexity.”
• The ruling fully supports the claims brought by PrivatBank. With interest and legal costs, the amount owed is expected to exceed $2 billion.
• Justice Richard Trower dismissed the pair’s defence, calling their case “built on dishonest foundations.” He said
• Kolomoisky acted as if he were “above the law,” and Bogolyubov tried to cover his tracks with misleading documents.
• Neither of them testified during the trial. According to the judge, they avoided the witness stand because they knew they couldn’t explain their actions.
• The court also found that Kolomoisky ordered the destruction of digital records, while Bogolyubov got rid of documents that could have been used as evidence.
• Meanwhile, Ukrainian anti-corruption officials are pursuing related criminal charges. Earlier in July, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) said it had finished an investigation into one of the bank’s former owners — widely believed to be Kolomoisky — and five others.
• They are accused of embezzling over $228 million through fake bond buybacks and laundering the money through offshore companies.
• Investigators say the plan was launched in 2015, while the main suspect was the governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region.
• PrivatBank obtained a worldwide asset freeze against both Kolomoisky and Bogolyubov in 2017.
• The bank says it will now begin efforts to recover the stolen funds- Chairman Nils Melngailis said
• . “This is a monumental victory for the Bank and our shareholder – the Government of Ukraine,”
• . “It shows the fraud was real, and that we were right to keep fighting.”
• Richard Lewis, a partner at Hogan Lovells, the law firm representing PrivatBank, said
• The case was  “one of the most complex” seen by the U.K. courts.
• according to a press release by PrivatBank.
• the defendants “deliberately destroyed and suppressed documents and sought unsuccessfully to shift the blame onto others,”

References

[1] London Judge Rules: Ukrainian Tycoons Stole $2 Billion from PrivatBank https://www.occrp.org/en/news/london-judge-rules-ukrainian-tycoons-stole-2-billion-from-privatbank

[2] Supreme Court puts an end to oligarch Kolomoisky's appeal for restoring ... https://kyivindependent.com/kolomoisky-privatbank/

[3] The Russian Laundromat: How $20 Billion was Transferred from Russia to ...https://www.amlcube.com/post/the-russian-laundromat-how-20-billion-were-transferred-from-russia-to-the-rest-of-the-world