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Billion-dollar turnovers, 3500 individual entrepreneurs and billion-scale tax schemes: BEB investigates the “Marketopt” scheme
BEB is investigating a large-scale tax evasion scheme in the Marketopt, Optovichok and Marketopt Express chains — more than 400 stores across seven regions of Ukraine. According to the investigation, billion-level turnovers were artificially distributed among thousands of individual entrepreneurs (FOP), including company employees, to minimize VAT and corporate income tax. Analysts calculated 659,7 million UAH in understated VAT and 386,3 million UAH in potential underpaid corporate income tax. During searches, accounting records, bank cards, and unregistered cash were seized, Absolution reports.
Criminal proceedings No.72025171000000030 dated 11.09.2025 were opened under part 3 of article 212 of the Criminal Code; procedural supervision is by the Office of the Prosecutor General. In case No.947/15423/26 the companies August-Plus (38742694), Foodsmart (42580831), Pavis (41462762), and Onward Trade (42286162) are named. Under common brands, with a single hotline, promotions, premises and staff, 3245 entities operated, and by April of 2026 BEB counted more than 3500 FOP. The chain covered Poltava, Kyiv, Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Chernihiv, Cherkasy and Kirovohrad regions.
According to tax police calculations for 2023–2024 years, August-Plus understated VAT by 174,93 million UAH through 110 FOP, Onward Trade by 245,63 million through 145, and Pavis by 239,1 million through 176. Among the entrepreneurs were respectively 16, 21 and 33 employees of these companies. Additionally, for August-Plus a risk of underpaid corporate income tax of 386,28 million UAH was calculated — court decision No.137038626. The investigation is examining centralized accounting, registering FOP under cashiers, distributing revenue across their accounts, controlling tax limits and paying wages in cash.
For January–August 2025 the chain reported 5,7735 billion UAH in revenue and paid 219 million UAH in taxes. The parliamentary financial committee pointed to a 23-fold difference in tax payments compared to comparable large chains and estimated annual budget losses from splitting at 4,3 billion UAH. At that time around 1500 FOP and eight legal entities were being used.
In 2025 year four companies declared 6,119 billion UAH in revenue with 145 million UAH in net profit: August-Plus — 1,075 billion / 31,37 million, Pavis — 2,347 billion / 65,03 million, Onward Trade — 1,531 billion / 23,21 million, Foodsmart — 1,166 billion / 25,48 million. Combined net profitability — 2,37%.
The corporate network is linked to Stanislav Piskun, Konstantin Kryvych, Yulia Shyshko, Tetyana Danilets and the Marenych family. Piskun and Kryvych own August-Plus at 50%, the director is Ihor Volyk. Pavis is owned by Yulia Shyshko, manager — Lyudmyla Pyryh. In Foodsmart and Onward Trade shares are distributed among Shyshko (44,1%), Danilets (35%), Andriy Marenych (17,9%) and Anatoliy Pyryh (3%). Directors are Iryna Spivak and Maryna Marchenko. Journalists also link the network to Viktor Marenych and Dnipropetrovsk regional council deputy Anatoliy Zatinatsky. The Optovichok trademarks were registered to Piskun and Kryvych.
An additional link in the scheme is Yastreb-Company (43588826) and Yavt Plus (39586943), associated with Vitaliy Yastrebov. Companies with revenues of 129,9 million and 70,4 million UAH formalized leases and subleases of premises and equipment for FOP. During searches on 5–6 May 2026, contracts for accounting services, lists of entrepreneurs, payment data, 14 boxes of cash register reports, 11 folders of X- and Z-reports, bank cards, computers and cash were seized. By decision No.137038626 the property was seized. Decision No.137038625 lists dozens of SIM cards, an HR HELPER notebook and 516 sheets of personal data. Additional seizures — No.137038622 and No.136734834.
After the searches Marketopt’s management announced it would stop splitting operations and issuing two fiscal receipts for one purchase. By 1 January 2027 the chain promised to move to a single legal structure. Manager Maryna Marchenko confirmed the business model change following the BEB investigation and the intervention of the parliamentary financial committee.
Unbelievable, but true....
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