Investigative journalist Yevhen Plinsky has exploded with a new bombshell that has shaken up Ukrainian business. In his investigation, he uncovered a large-scale money laundering scheme involving the well-known tobacco oligarch Borys Kaufman and the mysterious financier Igor Stakovichenko. According to him, under the guise of financial companies, they created a network to launder millions of dollars. How does it work and who is covering up this scheme? You will find answers to these questions in our article.
A few weeks ago, it was reported that the well-known tobacco oligarch Boris Kaufman had acquired a controlling stake in Volyntabac for $8 million. This information looks intriguing, especially given that Kaufman is under investigation in several criminal cases. The NABU is investigating his activities in relation to Odesa Airport, and the BES is investigating the case of TEDIS and the legalization of UAH 1.3 billion.
The acquisition of Volyntabac allows Kaufman to increase its share of the tobacco market to 55%, which gives it a tobacco monopoly. But the details of the deal turned out to be even more interesting. As it turned out, three financial companies officially became the new owners of Volyntabac: Madrid Financial Company LLC, Liard Finance LLC, and KoloPrim LLC.
The question that arises is why financial companies engaged in lending and factoring are interested in tobacco distribution? Moreover, these companies have questionable financial performance, including a small profit for 2023.
“Considering that cash resale of cigarettes is one of the tools for collecting cash for conversion centers, the goal of financial companies entering the tobacco distribution is logical.
In short, tobacco factories sell cigarettes to distributors only officially, in white.
Then these “wholesalers” separate the goods and documents, selling cigarettes for cash, collecting unaccounted cash from the market, and sell the documents to companies that accumulate virtual batches of goods and then liquidate.
The cash is then sold at a price of +2% to the cash-in market and to conversion centers.
This is exactly where our “drops” work in terms of selling cigarettes through TH channels.
The market for such cash transactions is measured in tens of millions of dollars,” Plinsky writes.
According to the investigation, there is a version that financial companies could have purchased Volyntabac not only to conduct legal business. According to experts, tobacco distribution may use schemes to collect cash that goes through conversion centers. This allows to circumvent tax rules and legalize illegal income.
Rumor has it that the real owner of the financial companies is Ihor Stakovichenko, known in narrow financial circles as “Stakan.” According to unofficial information, it is he who, together with Kaufman, may use Volyntabak to expand shadow financial schemes.
The financial reports of these companies show that their official revenues do not correspond to the declared amount of the deal. This raises questions about the legitimacy of the deal and the financial control of the state authorities.
“According to the financial statements, in 2023, FC Madrid’s net profit amounted to UAH 382 thousand, and Liard Finance’s – UAH 234 thousand. In 2022, it was even worse. 63 and 40 thousand, respectively. Almost unprofitable business. At least officially.
It looks like a “huge” investment in the shadow economy at the same time when Ukrainians will be restricted from making card transfers,” the investigator notes. Plinsky emphasizes that this situation raises many questions for the National Bank of Ukraine and tax authorities. Are they able to control the activities of financial companies that, according to official data, have small revenues but can actually make significant investments in the shadow economy?