Court blocks 200 million of ex-Crimea MP Novinsky's funds

In Kyiv, a court seized UAH 196.9 million on the account of a private enforcement officer in a case related to the sanctioned former MP Vadym Novynskyi. According to the investigation, these funds could have been legalized through a complex scheme of debt assignment.

This was reported by the Court Reporter.

In October 2024, PrivatBank stopped a transaction during which Smart Investments Cyprus Ltd, the beneficiary of which is the sanctioned ex-MP Vadym Novynskyi, tried to transfer UAH 196.9 million to the account of a private enforcement officer. The reason for the transfer was a recovery under a ruling of the Economic Court of Zaporizhzhia Oblast in a lawsuit filed by Ceres-I LLC.

The money was credited to PrivatBank's intra-bank account, and the bank terminated all business relations with the private enforcement officer and closed his accounts.

According to the investigation, Smart-Leasing LLC allegedly repaid the debt, which was assigned through a complex scheme. Ceres-I LLC received the right to claim funds from Smart-Leasing under a factoring agreement from Cormel Group LLC. However, the analysis of cash flows showed that there were no financial transactions between these companies.

Law enforcement officials believe that Novynskyi was trying to legalize his funds in this way. Since January 2025, he has been officially suspected in another criminal proceeding - high treason and incitement to religious hatred and enmity through media appearances and posts on Telegram.

In August 2025, the court refused to allow the SBI to seize the funds in the treason case, as there were no new grounds or evidence that the money was related to this investigation. Six days later, UAH 196.9 million was transferred to the account of a private enforcement officer at Oschadbank, which effectively facilitated the alienation of assets. The investigator recognized these funds as material evidence.

The SBI reapplied for the money to be seized. The court agreed that the basis for the seizure was to ensure future confiscation of assets as a form of punishment for Novynskyi under a court sentence. As a result of the ruling, the funds in the Oschadbank account were seized.

On September 15, the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv chose custody as a measure of restraint for Novynskyi, a former MP of several convictions from the banned pro-Russian Opposition Bloc party, who also served as a "curator" of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine. Since 2014, he has been spreading pro-Russian narratives through the media, public speeches, and social media, trying to shape anti-government and pro-Russian sentiment in Ukraine and justifying Russia's aggression.

Анна Бальчінос