Former pharmaceutical company of Russians is taken over by Odesa businessman Kaufman

Odesa businessman and co-owner of TEDIS Ukraine Borys Kaufman has gained control over the pharmaceutical distributor Venta LTD, which was under the influence of the Russian pharmaceutical group Katren before the full-scale invasion.

This was reported by Ekonomichna Pravda.

According to the publication's interlocutors, since the summer of 2025, negotiations have been held in Vienna between large pharmaceutical manufacturers, including Darnitsa and Interchem, as well as representatives of the largest pharmacy chains. One of the meetings was attended by Boris Kaufman, who was introduced to the participants as the new owner of Venta Ltd. The businessman made it clear that the company plans to actively increase its market presence.

"Venta LTD was founded in 1998 by Alexander Voloshin, Boris Muril and Denis Arzamastsev. Ten years later, the company was acquired by the Russian group Katren, which by 2016 had concentrated about 90% of the business.

Later, the ownership structure changed: 66% of the company was registered to Russian citizen Sergey Mishko and the Ritter family from Germany, while another 24% remained with Katren.

After the outbreak of the Great War, the Russian company's share was arrested, and later the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv transferred it to the management of the ARMA.

Starting in 2022, control over Venta was gradually transferred to Oleksandr Voloshyn, the company's longtime CEO. Currently, he controls 94% of the company directly and through the related structure I.K.Vel. Another 6% belongs to pharmaceutical businessman Oleksandr Chumak.

Kaufman is known as the founder of the Vertex United investment group, which includes the Bristol,London and President hotels. He is also a co-owner of TEDIS Ukraine, the largest distributor of tobacco products in Ukraine.

In political circles, Kaufman is associated with the head of the Servant of the People faction , David Arakhamia. Arakhamia himself has previously confirmed a long-standing acquaintance with the businessman's family, and sources claim that they remain in close contact.

In addition, Kaufman is involved in several anti-corruption proceedings. In 2022, he was detained by the DBR while trying to travel abroad, and later the NABU announced suspicion of creating a criminal organization and bribing officials. After his arrest, the businessman was released from the jail on bail of UAH 129 million.

In April, the Commercial Court opened bankruptcy proceedings against Tedis Ukraine, which was the businessman's main asset and in 2023 ranked third in terms of revenue in Ukraine.

Анна Бальчінос