In the first quarter of 2025, Ukrainian one-dollar store chain Aurora (Vygidna Pokupka LLC) increased its revenue by 32.5% compared to the same period in 2024, to UAH 10.6 billion.
“We have summarized the results of Aurora Multimarket for the first quarter of 2025. The company’s revenue amounted to UAH 10.6 billion (UAH 12.7 billion including VAT). During this time, we have opened more than 70 new stores in Ukraine and Romania. We are constantly creating new jobs, our team is already more than 15.5 thousand people,” said Taras Panasenko, CEO of the chain, on Facebook on Wednesday.
As reported by the Ukrainian Council of Shopping Centers with reference to YouControl, in the first quarter of 2024, the retailer’s revenue amounted to UAH 8 billion, which is 55.2% more than in the same period in 2023.
According to Panasenko, in January-March of this year, the chain paid more than UAH 2.1 billion in taxes and fees to budgets of all levels, including UAH 210.9 million in personal income tax to local community budgets.
As reported, Aurora’s revenue in 2024 increased by 42.5% to UAH 38.5 billion (excluding VAT).
“Aurora was founded in 2011 by Lev Zhydenko, Taras Panasenko and Lesya Klymenko. As of the end of 2024, the chain had more than 1600 stores in Ukraine and 30 in Romania. The head office of the retail chain is located in Poltava.
According to Opendatabot, the owner of Vyhidna Kupilka LLC, which develops the chain, is Cyprus-based Auroritail Investments Limited, and its beneficiary is Zhydenko.
In 2024, Poznyaky-Zhytlo-Bud PrJSC (Kyiv) reduced its net profit by 13.4 times to UAH 1.47 million, while its revenue decreased by 22.3% to UAH 186.7 million.
According to the company’s financial results published in the information disclosure system of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), its gross profit decreased by 47.5% to UAH 43.3 million.
Last year’s loss from operations amounted to UAH 33.3 million, compared to a profit in 2023. Poznyaky-Zhytlo-Bud’s retained earnings amounted to UAH 3.6 million. By the end of the reporting period, long-term liabilities increased by 60% to UAH 5.2 million, while current liabilities increased by 6.3% to UAH 2.51 billion.
In general, the value of Poznyaky-Zhytlo-Bud’s assets increased by 6.4% last year and reached UAH 2.52 billion.
It is noted that the company’s bonds have been redeemed since January 2024. Thus, the redemption of I2, L2 and M2 series bonds is carried out by transferring apartments in the Taryan Towers residential complex (12 John Paul II Street in the Pechersk district of Kyiv), and J2 and N2 series bonds – by newly built parking spaces in the said residential complex.
The company reported that it continues to build Taryan Towers, which consists of three buildings with 572 apartments with a total area of more than 62 thousand square meters, and is also conducting preparatory work to start construction work on the NVER residential complex project on Lesia Ukrainka Boulevard in Kyiv. According to the project, 279 apartments with a total area of 28 thousand square meters will be built in two towers of the complex.
According to the National Securities and Stock Market Commission, as of the end of 2024, Ruzanna Kahramanyan is the shareholder of Poznyaky-Zhytlo-Bud (100%).
Poznyaky-Zhytlo-Bud PrJSC was founded in 2002 and specializes in the construction of elite residential real estate, commercial real estate and social infrastructure.
According to the company’s website, its portfolio of completed construction projects includes residential and office complexes with an area of more than 1 million square meters.
Since December 2015, Poznyaky-Zhytlo-Bud Corporation has been a part of the investment and development group of companies Taryan Group (Kyiv), established in 2011 by Artur Mkhitaryan, former president of Poznyaky-Zhytlo-Bud PrJSC.
The government has made the decisions necessary to sign an agreement between Ukraine and the United States on the establishment of the Recovery Investment Fund, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
“The government has made the decisions necessary to sign an agreement between Ukraine and the United States on the establishment of the Recovery Investment Fund,” Shmyhal wrote in a telegram.
According to him, the agreement is based on five key principles.
– Equality. The fund is created on a 50/50 basis and both parties have equal voting rights.
– Retention of control. Ukraine retains full control over subsoil, infrastructure and natural resources.
– New investments, not debts. The agreement does not provide for any debt obligations.
– Guaranteed investors and buyers. The Fund will invest in projects and guarantee commercial purchases of products on a take-or-pay basis.
– Consistency with the European integration course. The agreement will not pose an obstacle to Ukraine’s EU membership.
Shmyhal noted that the Fund will be filled with contributions from the United States and Ukraine. The Fund’s profits will be reinvested exclusively in Ukraine.
“Thanks to this agreement, we will be able to attract significant resources for recovery, start economic growth, and receive the latest technologies from partners and a strategic investor in the United States,” the Prime Minister concluded.
On May 2, NovaPay International Financial Service (NovaPay TM) will launch a public offering of the 10th series of bonds – Series J – with a total nominal amount of UAH 100 million of its subsidiary NovaPay Credit LLC, which will be used by the issuer in its bond repurchase program, which is an alternative to deposits.
According to the website of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), it registered the issue and approved the prospectus of the J series bonds on April 25.
According to the prospectus, the bonds are issued for a term of three years, the nominal interest rate has been increased to 18% p.a. from 17% p.a. in previous series, and interest income is paid at the end of the circulation period.
The placement price was set at the par value of UAH 1 thousand per bond.
Univer Capital LLC was appointed as the administrator of the J series bonds, as well as the previous ones.
“The funds raised as a result of the bond issue through a public offering are planned to be used in the following areas: credit operations for legal entities – 20% of the actual funds raised; credit operations for individuals – 80% of the actual funds raised,” the prospectus says.
As reported, in 2023, NovaPay made three public issues of interest-bearing bonds of series A, B, and C for UAH 100 million each, and last year issued six more series of bonds – D, E, F, G, H, and I. In particular, in October-December 2024, three series of bonds – “G”, “H” and “I” – were placed for a total amount of UAH 290 million, which increased the total amount of the company’s securities in circulation to UAH 890 million.
Securities of all series, except for “B” and “I”, are used for the repurchase program and are available for purchase in the NovaPay mobile application, while “B” and “I” bonds are offered for sale to institutional clients, with interest income paid quarterly.
According to the prospectuses, the last three series of bonds have a three-year maturity. The nominal interest rate on them is 17% per annum, while for the three previous issues it was 18%.
NovaPay, which promotes most of its bonds as an alternative to bank deposits through a one- to 12-month repurchase scheme. Since April 17, the company has slightly raised interest rates on them: now they range from 10% per month to 19% per year, and a new investment term of four months at a rate of 17.5% per annum has been added.
NovaPay is an international financial service founded in 2001. It is part of the Nova group and provides online and offline financial services at Nova Poshta offices. It was the first non-bank financial institution in Ukraine to receive an expanded NBU license in 2023, which allowed it to open accounts and issue cards, and the first non-bank to launch its own financial application at the end of last year.
According to the prospectus, NovaPay Credit plans to increase its interest income to UAH 802.1 million this year, and to UAH 1 billion 515.1 million next year, and to generate UAH 518.9 million and UAH 1 billion 30.6 million in net profit, respectively.
Last year, the company’s net profit increased to UAH 89.2 million from UAH 40.3 million a year earlier, while revenue grew to UAH 285.6 million from UAH 95.6 million.
ICSG forecasts that global refined copper production will increase by around 2.9% to 28.9 million tons in 2025. This is driven by the continued expansion of production capacity in China and the start-up of new plants in other countries such as Indonesia, India and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Copper demand is expected to increase by 2.4% to 28 million tons in 2025. Top 20 copper producing countries in 2024
Place Country Production volume (million tons)
1 Chile 5.3
2 Democratic Republic of Congo 3.3
3 Peru 2.6
4 China 1.8
5 Indonesia 1.1
6 USA 1.1
7 Russia 0.93
8 Australia 0.8
9 Kazakhstan 0.74
10 Mexico 0.7
11 Zambia 0.65
12 Canada 0.6
13 Poland 0.5
14 Brazil 0.4
15 Mongolia 0.35
16 Iran 0.3
17 Armenia 0.25
18 Serbia 0.2
19 Bolivia 0.18
20 Turkey 0.15
Source: USGS, ICSG, 2024
