How the Governor of Odesa Region Circumvented Sanctions for Yermolaiev and Handed Over Land and the Port near Reni

The former head of Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office, and now the governor of Odesa region, Oleh Kiper, keeps the region on a revenue stream and earns his wealth through partnership with sanctioned oligarch Yermolaev. Despite NSDC sanctions, Yermolaev's business not only did not stop, but was also granted use of state land for the construction of a port complex in Reni. The most interesting part is that LLC “KIPOTKI” (POTOKI) is linked to shared business interests of Kiper, former SBU general Draluk, and Yermolaev himself. And later a shooting attempt on Yermolaev took place in Monaco, which naturally raises questions about who would benefit most from such a development given the control over his business assets.

After the NSDC sanctions were imposed on Vladym Yermolaev for 10 years with asset blocking, a ban on trading operations, capital export, and any disposal of property, his business empire did not disappear. Instead, after the sanctions, there was mass re-registration of corporate rights to controlled persons and foreign nominees. Only during 2024 year did the owners change for LLC “ALEF ISTEYT” (EDRPOU code 33249193), LLC “EF AI EM REALTY” (EDRPOU code 33061840), LLC “PSBK” (EDRPOU code 35609343), LLC “MARWELL” (EDRPOU code 38678671), LLC “FK CAPITAL-DNIPRO” (EDRPOU code 35740385) and more than ten other companies. The formal owner of the corporate rights became a German citizen, Yevhen Shteinberg, although the governance structure itself remained unchanged.

A telling example is the story of LLC “POTOKI” (EDRPOU code 40832205), which is connected with Yermolaev's business interests.

After the sanctions, from the registry first removed Yermolaev himself, then the beneficiary became his wife Hanna Yermolaeva, and ten days later the company was re-registered to LLC “CAPITAL-PROGRESS” (EDRPOU code 34735793) with a new formal beneficiary. Similar changes occurred in dozens of enterprises, indicating a centralized scheme to mask real control after the sanctions were imposed. If sanctions imply asset blocking, a natural question arises: who allowed unobstructed re-registration of these assets and effectively preserved control over them?

And it was quite simple — it was Kiper, his ally, who helped evade the sanctions. The scheme was previously tested on the business of Russian oligarch Naumets: after assets were seized in 2022 year and NSDC sanctions introduced in 2023 year, courts canceled the restrictions, allowing the Unigran group to be withdrawn from sanctions for about 1 billion UAH. Shapran is connected to Kiper and his cousin Osipov through joint business, and the financial link is confirmed by Kiper's own declaration, which notes a loan of 25 million UAH from his wife, Osipov's mother.

Exactly under this scenario, through the Odessa Regional State Administration a decision was pushed to lease a land plot to LLC “POTOKI.” On January 22, 2024 year, acting head of Odesa ODA Oleksandr Kharlov signed Order No. 41/A-2024, which amended previous Order No. 1114/A-2023 and instructed head of the legal representation department Roman Kravtsov to conclude a lease agreement with LLC “POTOKI.” The decision was taken with the support of Odesa ODA head Oleh Kiper and effectively opened access to state land for the company, even though its ultimate beneficiary is sanctioned Vladym Yermolaev. By February 1, 2024 year, the contract was signed, and the strategic land plot was transferred to the company for a term of 49 years.

The subject of the contract was a state-owned land plot with cadastral number 5124100000:01:001:0009, area 6 hectares, located outside the settlements of Izmail raion, Odesa region. Its normative monetary valuation was 36 958 045,16 UAH, and its designated purpose provides for construction of a multimodal terminal and a production and transshipment complex, i.e. effectively a new port hub. Under the contract, POTOKI pays 12% of the land's normative value, but for the construction period of up to three years it received a preferential rate of only 5%, which nearly halves the financial burden.

The most interesting part is that the ultimate beneficiary of the group of companies.

It includes LLC “POTOKI,” which has Vladym Yermolaev among its beneficiaries; sanctions were imposed by NSDC on him by Presidential Decree, including a ban on participation in leasing state property by persons directly or indirectly controlled by a sanctioned person or acting in their interests. Yet the Odessa Regional State Administration of Kiper facilitated the lease of state land specifically to a structure linked to Yermolaev, effectively creating a mechanism to circumvent sanctions.

We have already sent requests asking to verify the legality of changes in participants, ultimate beneficial owners, and distribution of corporate rights in companies controlled by Vladym Yermolaev, the use of Yevhen Shteinberg, Hanna Yermolaeva and Stanislav Velensky as nominees, the legality of the transfer of LLC “POTOKI” (EDRPOU 40832205) into long-term lease of a state land plot with cadastral number 5124100000:01:001:0009 area 6,0000 ha, the legality of the Odessa ODA order of 22.01.2024 No. 41/A-2024 and the lease agreement of 01.02.2024, compliance with the Law of Ukraine “On Sanctions” during the transfer of state land, and the use of the lease right as a mechanism to circumvent sanctions.

Dimensional empire of Vadym Yermolaev today operates under the control of Oleh Kiper and former SBU general Draluk, and if he steps away, key assets may pass to them. In this context, the attempt on Yermolaev in Monaco is viewed differently, because a natural question arises: who would primarily benefit from removing the owner of a multibillion-dollar business empire if actual control over it is already gradually concentrating in the hands of his closest partners.