Media: The National Bank of Ukraine is preparing the former Alfa-Bank for nationalization

The National Bank of Ukraine recognized the reputation of two companies of shareholders of Sense Bank (former Alfa-Bank) – ABH Holdings SA and ABH Ukraine Limited – as flawed. This was another step towards the nationalization of the former Alfa-Bank, writes the Ukrainian edition of Strana.ua.

Recognizing the reputation of the bank’s shareholders as flawed will allow the Ukrainian authorities in the future to take this bank from Russian shareholders who have fallen under the sanctions of the West and the Ukrainian authorities. Recognition of a faulty reputation will deprive companies of the ability to dispose of Sense Bank shares.

ABH Holdings SA and ABH Ukraine Limited own 100% of Sense Bank shares: (57.6006% – ABH Holdings SA; 42.3994% – ABH Ukraine Limited). Through these companies, Russian businessmen Andrei Kosogov, Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven own the bank.

The nationalization of the former Alfa-Bank, the Ukrainian authorities began back in 2022, when the bank received a new name – Sense Bank. In March of this year, the National Bank submitted to the Verkhovna Rada a bill that allows the bank to be nationalized if its shareholders have lost their impeccable reputation. The existing norms for the nationalization of the bank were not enough, since the credit institution did not violate the norms introduced by the National Bank.

Earlier, the media wrote that the Polish Grupa Polsat Plus, which is owned by Poland’s richest businessman Zygmunt Solozh, became interested in the former Alfa-Bank. However, the nationalization will not allow the Russian shareholders to sell the bank to him.

Anastasia Larina