Hidden offshore business is surrounded by presidents, expensive real estate in the heart of the British capital, companies that hide business in the Crimea, loans to private planes of the oligarchs and the conflict over a valuable asset on the Black Sea coast. These are just some of the findings that journalists were able to establish due to a large-scale leak of documents, Slidstvo.Info reports. These are Pandora Papers.
Pandora Papers is an association of investigative journalists. It is known that more than 600 journalists from 117 countries during the year examined 11.9 million confidential files - this is the largest leak of confidential documents. Ukrainian journalists also joined the work on these files.
Pandora Papers provide an accurate picture of the fourteen global law firms that have managed the financial activities of offshore companies in the British Virgin Islands, Belize, Cyprus and Samoa.
International clients providers and owners of offshore companies hide illegal income and bribes, evade taxes, harming the world economy. Ukrainian oligarchs, former and current officials, deputies and even sports and pop stars were also found in the documents.
London calling Ze President
With the transfer of Kvartal 95 studio to Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoisky's TV channel, in 2012 the current president's inner circle created a network of offshore companies, which now owns luxury real estate in London for millions of dollars.
Through a network of offshore companies affiliated with the president, two of Zelensky's close associates became owners of luxury real estate in London. In particular, we are talking about the first aide to the president.
So Sergei Shefir, screenwriter and producer, co-founder of "95 Quarters", and now - the first aide to President Zelensky, through an offshore company owns two apartments in the British capital worth a total of more than 5 million US dollars.
Another owner of London real estate is also a former business partner of President Zelensky, screenwriter and director of films and series "Studio Quarter 95" Andriy Yakovlev.
According to the UK Land Registry, the firm, which Yakovlev reportedly owns from other offshore companies, owns an apartment in central London, a 10-minute walk from Parliament. which were analyzed by journalists, the cost of this apartment is more than 2 million US dollars.
Also, according to Pandora Papers, it is Yakovlev who owns Candlewood Investments Limited, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands. -2016 could receive millions of dollars in the account from "Privatbank" through the companies connected with the Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoisky.
Kvartal director and screenwriter Andriy Yakovlev, head of the Security Service of Ukraine Ivan Bakanov and first aide to the president Serhiy Shefir did not comment on the investigation. and co-founder of "95 quarters", while the only one who agreed to tell something about the organization of offshore business:
"Bakanov was our financial director, he arranged the financial schemes of our company. , to be honest, I'm not ready to answer now. Maybe I'm the owner. "
He also said he had already closed 23 offshore companies and was "going to continue the process."
The loan for the daughter of the head of the Presidential Administration
Pandora Papers for the first time opens a chest of carefully hidden secrets of former and current officials. On June 16, 2014, on the sixth day after the appointment of Borys Lozhkin as the head of the administration of President Petro Poroshenko, his daughter - Anastasia - is buying luxury real estate in a prestigious area of London. On credit.
An apartment in the center near University College London, where the daughter of a Ukrainian official studied, cost her almost 4.6 million US dollars.
"She chose this apartment herself - the price is low as for the center of London ", - the businessman Boris Lozhkin assures now in telephone conversation with Monaco.
Virginia's Future Definite Holdings Limited, a company owned by her own father, Boris Lozhkin, owns the girl's real estate.
"In 2013, when I sold the business, my daughter asked: to buy an apartment - can I borrow money from you? I will earn and return, "Lozhkin told reporters.
The list of Ukrainians with British real estate also includes the ex-co-owner of Privatbank, the withdrawal and money laundering cases from which are being investigated in Ukraine and the United States, oligarch Gennady Bogolyubov. Pandora Papers testifies to his involvement in at least nine properties in the UK.
Property in the heart of London is owned by a Ukrainian businessman and former co-owner of UkrSibbank. Alexander Yaroslavsky, and business partner of oligarch Dmitry Firtash - Igor Voronin.
Film conflict of interests of the Minister of Culture
The Minister of Culture Oleksandr Tkachenko also appears in Pandora Papers. Documents from international providers point to the involvement of managers of oligarch Igor Kolomoisky's companies in an attempt to seize a controlling stake in the film studio on the Black Sea coast.
October 11, 2016 Oleksandr Tkachenko , as a gift received the rights to the British company - "shell" Big Boom LTD.
A week later, Big Boom LTD changed its name to Cinema Love LTD and acquired the Film Development Fund at PUNTA CRESCENT LIMITED, the company of Tatiana Taruta, daughter of businessman Sergei Taruta. Thus, Alexander Tkachenko received a quarter of the shares of the Odessa film studio.
According to Tkachenko himself, it is because of the conflict of interests that the Minister of Culture Tkachenko five days after his appointment, on June 9, 2020, sells his share of the Odessa film studio to banker Alexander Morozov, manager of Vadim Novinsky Smart Holding.
However, in his income statement, the Minister of Culture did not indicate the profit from the sale of his share of the Odessa Film Studio.
"Very urgent" loan for Rinat Akhmetov's plane
Pandora Papers opens the curtain of benefits that can be expected by privileged clients of large international law firms-registrars. At the request of a VIP client, they can create an offshore company as soon as possible or "smear" its influential beneficiary with an impeccable reputation before the regulators.
That Akhmetov for international registrars is a "well-known client" and often uses their services, in particular to take a loan from an international bank to purchase an elite aircraft.
"Very urgent," reads the subject of a letter concerning the richest Ukrainian, oligarch Rinat Akhmetov. The document is addressed to a provider in the British Virgin Islands, Trident Trust.
Providers take orders from a well-known customer on the same day.
Two months later, on December 16, 2014, one of these shell companies successfully obtained a loan from Credit Suisse to purchase a Falcon 7X business jet with the flight number P4-SCM.
The "epicenter" of the occupied Crimea
Pandora Papers found a network of offshore companies owned by MP Alexander Gereza. These firms are linked to a network of hypermarkets in the occupied Crimea.
Documents from international providers identify the Gereg couple as owners of five Cypriot companies.
They were all owned by the Geregs through a network of offshore companies, including two foundations, the Fundationsanstalt and the Gold Taurus Stiftung. This structure of Cypriot companies at that time allowed to avoid declaration.
Both funds are not listed in the MP's declaration, as are two of the five Cypriot companies. These are Samelio Holdings Limited and Edlagor Enterprises Limited.
The latter owns the largest chain of construction hypermarkets in the occupied Crimea, Novacenter K.
Alexander Gerega told reporters that he does not run any business in the Crimea.
"Management of real estate (hypermarkets) and operational activities of" Epicenter K "in the Crimea was lost after its occupation and annexation by the Russian Federation," - said the people's deputy.
