Ukrainian pharmaceutical market of the second tier

Who produces medicines for Ukrainians, but tries to stay in the shadows.

The Ukrainian pharmaceutical market is currently owned by a number of the largest companies producing and selling medicine. But despite their “weight”, they cannot be called monopolists, since at least 100 companies operate in this area.

"Yuria-Pharm" - billions in state tenders

Undoubtedly, the most important player in the “second” row of the pharmaceutical market, although not included in the TOP 3 industry leaders, but clearly not lower than the TOP 5, is the Yuria-Pharm company. Established in 1990 as a small enterprise “Medical Center M.T.K.”, “Yuria-Pharm” has gone through the standard path of domestic business from providing services to producing its own drugs now.

As a result, Yuria-Pharm today, according to the analytical service YouControl, is a group of companies of 18 companies engaged in the production of medicines and their sale. If you are being treated in a public hospital, it is very likely that the solution in the IV will be purchased from them.

The company's website describes itself as a manufacturer of 290 million units of drugs per year (another 33 million are produced in Italy) across 48 production lines with a market share of 3.3%, which, given the large number of manufacturers, is very respectable.

Legally, the work of Yuria-Pharm is concentrated in 2 largest companies:

— Yuria-Pharm LLC, engaged in the production of medicines;

— LLC “Medical Center M.T.K.”, selling medicines.

The financial performance of both companies is improving. Thus, at the end of 2023, Yuria-Pharm LLC gained 4.8 billion UAH, which is even more than in pre-war 2021 (4.56 billion UAH). LLC "Medical Center M.T.K." gained 4.2 billion and 4 billion UAH in 2023 and 2021.

At the same time, according to media reports, “Medical Center M.T.K.” is the No. 1 supplier of medicines to the state. So during the war, supplies amounted to 3.28 billion UAH. In total, according to the clarity-project service, the company won tenders worth UAH 8 billion.

But there is a dark side to all this success. Some believe that "M.T.K. Medical Center" “negotiates” with individual provincial medical institutions. For example, in Priluki, for some reason, the city hospital bought medicines worth 170 thousand hryvnia from the company, although this was not necessary.

Both Yuria-Pharm LLC and Medical Center M.T.K. LLC are involved in criminal proceedings No. 420210000000000031. According to the investigation, company officials registered a company in Serbia that bought drugs in India at 12.5 euros per 1 kg, sold by Yuria-Pharm and Medical Center M.T.K. 30.5 euros each. Thus, Ukrainian companies withdrew funds abroad, avoiding taxes in Ukraine. The result is that in just one year the state budget did not receive UAH 72 million. And there are more than one criminal proceedings for both companies in the court registers.

However, it is unlikely that this will develop into something more, and the company’s owners should not be afraid of anything. By the way, Yuria-Pharm can rightfully be called a family enterprise, because its owners are Nikolai Gumenyuk, a doctor of the highest category, Doctor of Medical Sciences, professor, founder of the company, his wife Galina Gumenyuk, daughter Natalya Derkach, and son-in-law Dmitry Derkach.

True, you can find information on the Internet that the shadow co-owner of Yuria-Pharm is a famous Ukrainian pulmonologist, chief phthisiologist of the Ministry of Health, director of the Institute of Phthisiology and Pulmonology named after. F.G. Yanovsky NAMNU academician Yuri Ivanovich Feshchenko. But judging by the company’s success in the field of state tenders, the company’s connections go much higher.

Kiev Vitamin Plant - Canadian business in Ukraine

More than 75 years of history, more than 120 types of drugs produced and constant growth in revenue even during the war - this is the Kiev Vitamin Plant, owned by Canadian businessman Maxim Martin.

The enterprise seems rather atypical for Ukraine - there are no big scandals or names around it, the company sells almost nothing to the state, and its income is growing. Thus, from 3 billion 37 million UAH in 2021, the Kiev Vitamin Plant increased its income to 4.3 billion UAH. in 2023. Probably vitamins, which account for up to 90% of the company's products, have become in increased demand.

Biopharma Plasma LLC - the “bloody” business of Vasily Khmelnitsky

The company, 90% owned by the Cyprus company Biopharma Plasma Limited, and 10% by the closed investment fund Indent, according to YouControl, is owned by the UFuture group of former people's deputy Vasily Khmelnitsky.

On the Ukrainian pharmaceutical market, the company is engaged in the procurement of plasma and the production of blood products. And it must be said that in war conditions such a specific business is growing.

Thus, in 2023, the company earned UAH 2.22 billion, which is almost 2 times more than in 2022 (1.18 billion) and 1.5 times more than in pre-war 2021 (1.55 billion ). At the same time, in 2022-2023, Biopharma Plasma supplied the state with medicines worth UAH 734 million, of which UAH 500 million last year. In total, the company has won victories totaling UAH 1.48 billion. Moreover, according to media reports, the company prefers to sell medicines to the state at rapidly growing prices, which can rise 1.5 times in a year.

Also in 2021, Biopharma Plasma was involved in criminal proceedings regarding the export of blood-based drugs from Ukraine, which exceeded official volumes. But the investigation was unable to prove anything.

Borshchagovsky Chemical-Pharmaceutical Plant – increases income and fights with Darnitsa

In 1947, the Borshchagovsky chemical and pharmaceutical plant began operating near Kiev and its history was very difficult - 30 years later it became part of the Darnitsa pharmaceutical association. In the 1990s, a joint venture was created on its basis, which subsequently went bankrupt.

The difficult history of the enterprise was reflected in its ownership structure - currently 31.8% of the shares belong to the pharmaceutical giant Darnitsa, owned by ex-People's Deputy Gleb Zagoriy. The remaining owners are hidden behind a scattering of offshore companies from Cyprus and the British Virgin Islands. And judging by the accusations addressed to Darnitsa on the plant’s official website of an attempt to seize control of the enterprise, things are going badly for the partners.

Like other pharmaceutical companies, the Borshchagovsky Chemical-Pharmaceutical Plant is a defendant in criminal proceedings, although the position of the enterprise itself is the ordered nature of the accusations from Darnitsa.

"Lekhim" - profitability fell threefold

Despite the demand for drugs during wartime, not all companies were able to regain their positions. On the contrary, the Lekhim group of companies significantly worsened its position, by some indicators by more than three times.

The company includes 6 companies, 2 of which are located abroad, and more than 1000 employees worked for the Ukrainian ones. The main structure is PrJSC Lekhim, which actually sells medicines and manages the main financial flows. If we compare the company’s revenue figures, compared to 2021 they fell more than threefold – to UAH 1.75 billion.

At the same time, the indicators of the production part of the group did not fall so much - at PJSC Lekhim-Kharkiv from 849 million to 560 million UAH, in 2021 and 2023, respectively, and PJSC Tekhnolog even increased revenue from 633 to 710 million UAH for the same period.

It is not clear what is causing such a sharp drop, because the owner of the company, Valery Pechaev, is an experienced manager who has worked his way up from an ordinary employee in Soviet times to the head of the still state-owned concern Ukrmedbioprom.

JV "Sperko Ukraine" - a Spanish business with Cypriot roots

Another successful representative of foreign capital in the Ukrainian pharmaceutical business, this time Spanish. True, despite the name, the company is formally completely owned by the Cypriot company Lux Pharma Participation Ltd.

The company’s business is going uphill; after a decline in 2022, Sperko Ukraine’s revenue in 2023 exceeded pre-war figures – UAH 1.25 billion. versus UAH 984 million. in 2021. In total, the company has been operating in Ukraine for more than 20 years.

It is curious that the company is involved in one of the criminal proceedings regarding the flight of men of military age from Ukraine - the company’s employees could leave Ukraine on a business trip.

“Lubnyfarm” of Poltava banker Alexander Nekrasov – income is growing

The owner of Poltava Bank, Alexander Nekrasov, quite successfully combines several types of business in his native region, including pharmacological. His group includes 3 enterprises: production at the Lubnyfarm plant, operating since 1932, wholesale trade at Poltavfarmholding and retail trade at Poltava Medicines LLC.

As “Comments” calculated, these 3 companies earned about UAH 713.4 million in 2023, of which Lubnyfarm JSC accounted for 560 million. However, it is possible that the success of the banker’s pharmaceutical business is explained by the fact that his sons Konstantin and Leonid are actually involved in it - 84% of the enterprise is registered to them.

The entrepreneur himself at one time had political ambitions and twice tried to get into the Verkhovna Rada in the elections of 2002 and 2006, but both times without success. Since then, Nekrasov Sr. and his sons have been quiet and do not attract media attention.

Unipharma - hundreds of millions on antiseptics and aerosols

The Unipharma medical holding belongs to little-known businessmen Arkady Polyanovsky and Igor Barkovsky. The holding, which emerged in 1992, is currently represented by the production of medicines at 2 factories - Ternopharm (Ternopil) and Micropharm (Kharkov), a chain of pharmacies and a private clinic.

At the end of 2023, Ternopharm and Micropharm earned more than before the war - UAH 338.5 million and UAH 196.3 million. versus UAH 266.2 and 134.4 million. in 2021=

The Krasnaya Zvezda plant is the pharmaceutical business of Kharkov deputy Sergei Kutsenko

The Kharkov chemical and pharmaceutical plant "Red Star" did not lose its name as part of decommunization, and despite the front-line status of the city, it is increasing its profitability - 348.4 million UAH at the end of 2023 (313.1 million UAH in 2021).

The owner of the plant is ex-deputy of the Kharkov City Council Sergei Kutsenko, whose Fito-lek group is engaged in pharmaceuticals and real estate. But for the businessman himself, pharmaceutics is clearly closer, because he has a medical education, and he worked at Red Star for 5 years before going into business and returning to the enterprise as its owner. At the same time, he alternates his practice of pharmaceuticals with theory, being the author of a number of scientific works.

Like Alexander Nekrasov from Poltava, Kutsenko is no stranger to politics, but much more successful, since he was a deputy of the city council in his native Kharkov from Eurosolidarity. True, in 2019 he almost lost his mandate due to the fact that he supported the consideration of the issue of returning the name “Marshal Zhukov” Avenue in Kharkov. Later, he himself resigned, concentrating on business.

As is easy to see, the pharmaceutical business in Ukraine has a number of features:

— there is no single monopolist on it, not even a group of several companies. There are a lot of independent players who are able to earn money and defend their interests;

— for the most part, the pharmaceutical business manages without loud scandals, which is even strange for such a lot of money;

— all any large players prefer not only to produce, but also to sell medicines, creating entire financial chains, so it is very difficult to understand the real income of pharmaceutical businessmen.