The move comes days after the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) published an investigation that implicated Sense Bank in a money laundering scheme involving several state officials.
Koretskyi also said that, at the Finance Ministry’s recommendation, the government also appointed a state representative to the bank’s supervisory board to speed formation of a quorum. Koretskyi called on the Finance Ministry and the National Bank of Ukraine to urgently ensure proper corporate governance at Sens Bank and to prepare the bank for sale.
On Aug. 19, the NABU announced the launch of a special operation called “Forrest Gump.” According to NABU, investigators exposed a group that laundered UAH150 million ($3.4 million) in cash to pay bail for one of the suspects in the "Midas" case. Although NABU did not name the individual, the reference is likely to former energy minister Herman Halushchenko, for whom bail in that exact amount was posted in late June.
According to investigators, the scheme involved a deputy
head of the Presidential Office, a former lawmaker, and the chairman of the
management board and chairman of the supervisory board of a state bank. To
carry out the plan, the group allegedly used a state bank and accounts
belonging to companies it controlled. Searches that day took place at the head
office of Sense Bank, which confirmed that investigative actions had occurred.