On Aug. 22, the NBU first indicated concern about the two companies by ruling that their business reputation was “unsatisfactory.”
Prosto Pozyka and Time Credit had provided false information to the regulator, claiming their owners — Andriy and Natalia Manucharov — did not hold Russian citizenship or tax residency.
On Sept. 5, NBU’s Committee for Supervision and Regulation of Non-Banking Financial Markets decided to void the licenses of Prosto Pozyka and Time Credit. In a statement, the NBU described the ruling as part of its ongoing efforts to address "the discovery of connections between the owners of non-banking financial institutions and the Russian Federation, and the removal of such institutions from the market."
On Aug. 29, RFE/RL journalists published an investigation indicating that Andriy and Natalia Manucharov obtained Russian citizenship in 2014. Their son Ivan serves as a representative in the Moscow-controlled parliament of occupied Crimea. He is a member of the ruling United Russia party.
Prosto Pozyka was founded in 2014, with more than 30 branches across Ukraine. The company offers payday loans ranging from 2,000 to 50,000 UAH ($50-1,200). The interest rate can reach up to 1,597,820% per annum, putting the business firmly into the “predatory lending” category.
The second company, Time Credit, has at least 11 branches in Ukraine.