26.03.2025 Agro

How MP from Tymoshenko’s group Andriy Verevsky cheated Ukraine out of UAH 1.5 billion in taxes

Kernel, one of the largest agricultural holdings in Ukraine, has been recognized by the Warsaw Stock Exchange as a stable and reliable asset. But not everything is so simple. Entrepreneurial businessman Andriy Verevsky decided it was time to raise the stakes and started his own shareholding game.

He issued 216 million shares of Kernel non-publicly, through shell companies. The share price plummeted from 43 zlotys to 1 zloty, causing a real stock market panic. And as is often the case in such situations, investors rushed to sell their shares, which gave Verevsky the opportunity to buy them back at a reduced price. As a result, he received a controlling stake and became the absolute owner of the company.

At the time of publication, the price of Kernel shares reached UAH 243 per share, meaning that shareholders sold their shares for 10 times less than their current value. A court case currently pending in Luxembourg shows how one of the richest Ukrainians has once again used manipulation for personal gain.

Doubtful supplies and offshore schemes

In the period from May 2024 to March 2025, the company made only 13 deliveries of oil – too few for an enterprise of this scale. A total of 750 thousand tons of products were exported through the ports of Odesa, but only 325 tons officially belonged to Kernel-Trade.

Through the ImportGenius system, which allows us to track deliveries, we discovered interesting facts: two new players, Yadro-Trade and Yadro-Torg, registered at the same address as Kernel Group, work with oil, but without tax liabilities. Their deliveries are made through a simplified form of payment – from a simple check to card transfers. These companies are involved in 215 shipments of 24-26 tons of oil at a time, which forms a huge “shadow” component of the market.

In fact, these companies are just legal shells through which illegal goods are pumped.

Since no taxes are paid on these deliveries, the amount of money illegally withdrawn from circulation reaches UAH 1.5 billion. This is the money that should have gone to the state treasury through tax payments for exports. Instead, it remains in the pockets of the oligarch and his front companies, while the country loses important financial resources.

Manipulation of the stock market

After the share buyback, the company announced its delisting from the Warsaw Stock Exchange, forcing investors to sell their shares for nothing. The shares were bought back for PLN 18.5 instead of the actual value of PLN 100.

In August 2024, an additional issue of $60 million was made, which Verevsky himself bought out.

In September 2024, there was another issue – shares were sold at PLN 1.16, which allowed Verevsky to get 90% of the company and oust minority shareholders.

Who pays for Verevsky’s success?

Andriy Verevsky undoubtedly made a huge profit, but what does this mean for Ukraine? The state budget did not receive 1.5 billion hryvnias, and ordinary investors and small shareholders lost their money.

Unless the state takes decisive action to combat such schemes, Ukraine will continue to lose its strategic assets to clever manipulators who skillfully circumvent the law.

What will happen when such stories become the norm? And while Ukrainian business is trying to maintain its reputation internationally, the actions of some oligarchs are undermining confidence in the entire country…

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