FDI McDonald’s Ukraine Ltd, which develops the McDonald’s fast food chain in Ukraine, opened its tenth restaurant in Odesa on Friday at 2a Simon Litman Street, the fourth project in cooperation with a gas station and the first in cooperation with OKKO filling station.
“With today’s opening in Odesa, the company (…) is gradually increasing the number of restaurants in large cities,” the company’s press service quoted Vitaliy Stefurak, McDonald’s Development Director in Ukraine, as saying.
The new McDonald’s is located in a residential area near the entrance to the city from the M-05 Kyiv-Odesa highway. The new McDonald’s in Odesa is the fourth restaurant of the chain to be located directly on the territory of a gas station and the first project implemented in cooperation with OKKO filling station. Earlier, McDonald’s opened two restaurants in cooperation with KLO and one restaurant in cooperation with WOG. Another restaurant is currently under construction in cooperation with OKKO in Mukachevo (Zakarpattia region).
This location became the 103rd operating restaurant of the chain in Ukraine out of 118. The first McDonald’s restaurant in Ukraine was opened on May 24, 1997 in Kyiv.
As reported, on September 20, 2022, McDonald’s began a phased opening of restaurants in Ukraine. By February 24 of the same year, the chain had 109 restaurants in 24 cities across the country. As of August 2024, 103 restaurants are operating, and the chain has 118 restaurants.
At the end of 2023, it increased its revenue by 3.9 times compared to the previous year, to UAH 12.9 billion, according to Opendatabot. According to the financial results for 2023, the company’s net profit amounted to UAH 1.29 billion, compared to a loss of UAH 2 billion in 2022. The number of employees in 2023 increased by 7% to 9,614. According to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs, the participant of FDI in McDonald’s Ukraine Ltd. is MCD Europe Limited (100%, London, UK).
Stanislav Sheikhetov, who owns 8.979% of the shares of Ingosstrakh Insurance Company (Dnipro), has reduced his stake to 0%, according to the insurer’s information posted in the NSSMC system. It is noted that Kariama LLC became the owner of 8.979% of the company’s shares.
As reported, Ingosstrakh Insurance Company was registered in 2004. It specialized in providing services in the field of risk insurance. The company’s general partner in the sale of insurance services was PrivatBank.
Earlier, the National Bank informed the insurer that the information on its ownership structure made it impossible to identify persons who have a significant influence on the company’s management or operations. It argued that none of the insurer’s shareholders owns 10% or more of the shares, and there is no information on persons who, independent of formal ownership, have the ability to exert an equivalent influence on the management or activities of Ingosstrakh. According to the regulator, this is one of the signs of non-transparency of the ownership structure of insurers.
Since the insurance company did not bring its ownership structure in line with the requirements of Ukrainian legislation, on March 23, 2023, the NBU revoked the licenses of Ingosstrakh Insurance Company to conduct financial services business, and on March 29, it removed the insurance company from the State Register of Financial Institutions.
Companies engaged in the supply of electronic services declared UAH 5.29 billion in VAT to be paid in the first half of 2024, which is UAH 1.43 billion, or 36% more than in the same period of 2023, according to Danylo Hetmantsev, chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance, Taxation and Customs Policy.
“The campaign for declaring VAT liabilities for the first half of 2014 by non-residents engaged in the supply of electronic services to individuals has recently ended. So we have a positive result. We have 122 taxpayers who have declared EUR56.9 million and USD68.4 million. This is the equivalent of UAH5.289 billion,” he wrote on his Telegram channel on Friday.
Hetmantsev noted that in 6 months of 2014, 15 more taxpayers were involved in taxation, including Aylo Billing Limited and Aylo Freesited LTD (adult entertainment services), Bright market, LLC (global commerce platform), Aptoide, S.A. (store and platform for the distribution of gaming applications).
At the same time, the leaders among VAT payers for digital services have not changed: the top 5 include Google, Apple, Meta platforms, Valve Corporation, and ETSY. According to Getmantsev, they did not wait for the deadline and have already paid their declared VAT liabilities.
“The acquisitions of the second quarter of this year can be attributed to the growth of the e-services market in Ukraine, an increase in the number of market participants, and the voluntary fulfillment of taxpayers’ tax obligations,” the head of the Financial Committee concluded.
Ukraine and Montenegro have started consultations on the preparation of a bilateral security agreement, the press service of the Ukrainian head of state said.
“Ukraine and Montenegro held a meeting on the conclusion of a bilateral security agreement. The document will contribute to strengthening security in Europe and deepening cooperation between the two countries,” – said in a message on the President’s website on Friday.
It is noted that today’s consultations were held by the Deputy Head of the Office of the President Igor Zhovkva. “We appreciate Montenegro’s unwavering position and unwavering support for Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion. We share common values and look forward to Montenegro’s assistance on Ukraine’s path to NATO membership. Ukraine and Montenegro also aspire to EU membership and undoubtedly already contribute to the security and prosperity of Europe,” Zhovkva said, quoted by the press service.
Ukraine concludes bilateral security agreements in pursuance of the G7 Joint Declaration adopted last year on July 12 in Vilnius. Twenty-five agreements have already been signed with the countries that supported it.
NEC Ukrenergo plans on Monday, September 2, to apply electricity restrictions for all regions in 1-2 queues throughout the day, NEC Ukrenergo said in Telegram.
In particular, from 00:00 to 16:00 there will be one queue of disconnections, from 16:00 to 24:00 – two.
Bohdan Katrushyn, known for his past in the highest echelons of the Ukrainian tax service, now lives in Spain. This is evidenced, in particular, by his recently filed tax return.
Who is he anyway?
Katrushin Bohdan Mykolayovych is a lustrated official who, after lustration, was illegally reinstated in the tax service thanks to a bought court decision
Bohdan Mykolayovych Katrushyn, by the order of the Ministry of Revenue and Duties of 16.03.2015 №178-o, was dismissed from the position of the First Deputy Head of the Main Department of the Ministry of Revenue and Duties in the ARC on the basis of the Law “On lustration of power”, where he had worked since 04.06.2013.
Katrushin appealed the order in court, arguing that he should have been dismissed not on 16.03.2015 in connection with lustration, but on 29.08.2014 at his own request in connection with his admission to the National Academy of Public Administration under the President of Ukraine.
Crimea was already under occupation, but Bohdan Mykolayovych continued to hold the position of Deputy Head of the Crimean Tax Service. A rare crook.
After graduating from the academy, Katrushyn applied to the SFS on 18.03.2016 for a position in the SFS, which was denied due to the fact that he could not hold a position in accordance with the Law “On the Purification of Power”.
By the decision of the Kyiv District Administrative Court of 20.01.2020 in case No. 810/2057/16, upheld by the decision of the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal of 21.09.2020, the court ordered the State Tax Service to provide Katrushyn B.M. with a position that is not lower, equivalent in terms of remuneration and nature of activity to the position determined by the agreement on referral to the Academy.
How did he manage to get such a court decision? It’s simple!
Katrushyn, in order to manipulate the automated system of distribution of court cases, filed 10 identical claims (cases No. 810/1640/16, 810/1654/16, 810/1743/16, 810/1744/16, 810/1745/16, 810/2055/16, 810/2056/16, 810/2057/16, 810/2058/16, 810/2059/16) and thus chose Judge Kushnova O.A., who considered the case as Katrushyn wanted. And who is Judge Kushnova, by the way? If you paint with broad strokes, there is nowhere to put the test there. She actively appears on Vovk’s tapes and reinstated a Lviv judge with a Russian passport in office
And what about the Tax Service? Nothing!
As is usual in this category of cases, it was merged!
The SFS submits a clumsy, formally drafted cassation appeal to the Supreme Court without paying the court fee, which the court returns. The court also explains to the SFS that it can resubmit the appeal.
However, neither the SFS nor the State Tax Service (as a successor) resubmitted the complaint.
By the way, the successor is just a formality. The case at the SFS was handled by people who had moved to the STS and were supposed to provide support.
Thanks to the efforts of Oleksiy Lyubchenko, Katrushyn was appointed first deputy head of the Main Department of the SFS in Kherson region in October 2020 and immediately transferred to the position of deputy head of the Main Department of the SFS in the same region.
In December 2020, Bohdan Katrushyn became the head of the Eastern Interregional Department of the State Tax Service for Large Taxpayers.
This is the implementation of the Law “On Lustration of Power” in the system of the State Tax Service.
Katrushyn, a tax officer who had been dismissed and reinstated several times (from the team of the decorated Major General of the Tax Police Oleksandr Nizenko), immediately saddled up his favorite horse in Dnipro – VAT. Together with his deputy Subota, they began to actively milk big business. One of the schemes involved redirecting clients with blocked tax invoices to the law firm of Katrushin’s friend and wallet, Denys Davydovych Statnikov. Under the guise of legal services for unblocking tax invoices, Denys Statnikov was fraudulently fleecing the business.
On April 1, 2022, Katrushyn was fired from his position as the head of the Eastern Interregional Department of the State Tax Service for Large Taxpayers.
“The real reason for his dismissal was his longstanding corruption, which could no longer be ignored. He made money on schemes that have long been known to everyone, such as blocking tax invoices or unblocking them. It’s a standard story: deliberately creating problems for large companies and then solving the issues for a fee. This is a classic of tax corruption that fed Katrushin for many years, until he got really brazen and set up the process on an industrial scale. That’s where he got caught,” says a law enforcement source.
Katrushin immediately challenged his dismissal in court, won the case, was reinstated in his position, and sued for compensation for his forced absenteeism! And this is despite the fact that immediately after the outbreak of war, Katrushin fled to Spain, taking his accomplice Denis Statnikov with him (he illegally crossed the border with Moldova by car on March 22, 2022).
Just think about it: a tax rat who has been parasitizing the state all his life fled to Spain at the outbreak of the war, from where he continues to steal millions of hryvnias from the budget of the warring country!
Although Katrushin’s friend Tetiana Kyrienko denies that Katrushin works for the tax office, this is only half true. Because he was reinstated by a court decision and is waiting for a convenient moment to decide on his next appointment. On perfectly legal grounds, because the tax office deliberately lost the courts!
Formally, Katrushin was fired for failing to properly execute documents for access to state secrets for at least six months, which blocked the work of the entire department.
Was such an experienced official unable to fill out the necessary documents? Of course he was. But the competent authorities categorically refused to visa them.
Firstly, Katrushin had a long-standing active business with the Russian Federation in purchasing railroad cars and then leasing them in Ukraine.
Secondly, his work in Crimea in 2014 as the deputy head of the Crimean tax service raises many questions. Somehow it happened that the entire leadership of the Crimean tax service safely returned to Ukraine during the Russian takeover of Crimea, but all databases, documents, etc. safely passed into Russian hands.
According to law enforcement sources, after his release, Katrushyn fled to Spain, taking with him everything he had “honestly earned” over the years in the civil service, knowing full well that law enforcement was already preparing a suspicion against him because of his corrupt dealings and cooperation with Russia.
And in Spain, Katrushyn went on a spending spree, spending all his “honestly earned” money in Ukraine on a new life.
As true “entrepreneurs,” Katrushin and Statnikov, along with their wives, founded Sk Costs Capital Invest SL, modestly locating their business in the picturesque city of Malaga, not far from the luxurious Marbella. The company has equally modest assets: eight apartments and eight non-residential premises that the Katrushin-Statnikovs rent out.
But this is just the tip of the iceberg. According to Katrushin’s 2022 declaration, he still has an equally modest house in Bucha with an area of 1,462 square meters, seven plots of land in the same city, three garages, two parking spaces, and four apartments in Kyiv, one of which is 242 square meters. And, of course, as a true car connoisseur, he managed to assemble a collection of four cars: two LAND ROVERS, including a brand new 2020 RANGE ROVER SPORT for more than UAH 2 million, as well as a Volkswagen Touareg and a Volkswagen Multivan.
But that’s not all. Katrushin declared a collection of coins, jewelry and works of art, but he, of course, did not want to disclose their value.
His wife Lyudmila is not far behind either: she owns a bunch of real estate and co-owns six companies, one of which, by the way, specializes in litigation with the tax authorities-a real family business. But here’s what’s really interesting: Lyudmyla was able to lend almost half a million euros to a Spanish company. A logical question arises: how and when did the NBU allow the withdrawal of these funds from Ukraine?
And this is despite the fact that in her entire life, Lyudmyla Katrushyna actually worked only a little in her younger days as an ordinary Vodafone manager. All the rest of the time, she has been nominally servicing her husband’s corrupt wealth.
The media declassified a photo of Katrushin’s “Spanish house”. However, this “house” looks more like a luxurious palace that only a very wealthy European or Ukrainian tax officer Bohdan Katrushyn can afford.
Officially, Katrushyn declares about a million euros on his personal accounts in foreign banks! And how much is registered in the names of relatives and straw men?
The big question for the NABU, SAPO, NAPC is why the state has not yet started hunting for the corrupt assets of odious corrupt officials? Instead of actively promoting the return of unjustified wealth to the state, and fugitive corrupt officials and their accomplices to Ukraine, what do we see? Silence. But it shouldn’t be this way. We hope that all corrupt assets will be recovered in favor of the state as soon as possible, and that no corruption crime or collaboration with the enemy will go unpunished.
