Opponents of the National Energy Campaign "Ukrenergo" in the case of a debt of 1.4 billion UAH. for electricity supplied to Igor Kolomoisky, they want to “whiten” the reputation of Alliance Bank, which did not fulfill its guarantee obligations to the state-owned company. This may be due to the fact that the financial institution is undergoing an inspection by the National Bank of Ukraine. It may end with the bank's withdrawal from the market, a source in the financial sector reports.
The day before, a number of media outlets distributed materials made with reference to a video by journalist Sergei Ivanov about the situation surrounding United Energy's debt to NEC Ukrenergo for electricity supplied at the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion.
The company, which is associated with Igor Kolomoisky, owes about UAH 1.4 billion to Ukrenergo. including penalties for late payments. In case of default, the debt had to be repaid using guarantees issued by Alliance Bank. The agency’s interlocutor points out that in the story, Sergei Ivanov completely takes the side of the financial institution, and also reduces the situation to a personal acquaintance between the head of Ukrenergo Vladimir Kudrytsky and Kolomoisky due to the fact that the former previously worked in the oligarch’s companies.
Previously, the chairman of the board of Alliance Bank was put on the wanted list due to criminal proceedings for abuse of power when issuing guarantees for a large amount to a potentially problematic borrower - the United Energy company - which resulted in damage to the state. The bank itself considers its refusal to pay under the guarantees to be justified, since Ukrenergo allegedly improperly completed the request for payment. At the same time, other requests made in a similar way for guarantees in relation to the same company were for some reason satisfied by Alliance
A source in the financial market notes that the intensification of the media campaign to “whiten” the bank’s reputation and shift the blame for the current situation exclusively to Ukrenergo and United Energy coincided with possible NBU inspections of the financial institution.
“Publications about the “purity” of the Alliance are appearing in mass media, even despite the criminal case by NABU and the wanted list of the chairman of the bank’s board. Perhaps the reason is the checks that have already begun. And the results can be unpredictable, up to and including the withdrawal of the bank from the market due to systematic violations. The reason is non-transparent reporting, unlawful issuance of guarantees, and subsequently refusal to service them,” notes our interlocutor.
It was previously reported that due to Alliance blocking in the courts the repayment of United Energy's obligations under guarantees to NPC Ukrenergo, the debt to the state for the supplied electricity amounts to about UAH 1.4 billion. Alliance Bank provided other guarantees (as of September 2023 they exceeded UAH 7 billion) and is involved in a number of criminal cases related to refusal to satisfy the demands of creditors, including the Ministry of Defense, the National Health Service, the Operator of the Gas Transmission System of Ukraine, Naftogaz Trading and Administration of seaports of Ukraine. The bank appears in the materials of criminal proceedings No. 42017000000000445 dated 02.17.17, which states that through the bank in 2017-2018, the management of Dmitry Firtash’s gas companies could illegally withdraw funds, which led to an increase in debt to Naftogaz.
