Ukraine’s State Financial Monitoring Service is drawing the attention of banks and international businesses to a significant increase in sanctions risks in connection with the U.S.-led Operation Economic Outcast, which aims to financially and economically isolate Iran, said Philip Pronin, head of the State Financial Monitoring Service.
According to him, the new U.S. sanctions policy extends the risks not only to Iranian companies and citizens directly, but also to foreign banks, financial companies, cryptocurrency platforms, traders, carriers, and other intermediaries that are directly or indirectly involved in facilitating transactions related to Iran.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury officially announced the launch of Operation Economic Outcast on August 24, 2026. As part of the first phase, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on nearly 60 companies, individuals, and vessels in various jurisdictions. The restrictions targeted entities that, according to U.S. authorities, were involved in procuring technology for Iran’s nuclear and missile programs, cyber operations, and generating revenue from oil trade.
The international networks identified by the U.S. included brokers, companies, and “shadow fleet” vessels operating in the UAE, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Switzerland, European countries, and other jurisdictions. The U.S. Treasury Department stated that it would pay particular attention to the use of third countries to circumvent sanctions.
At the same time, OFAC significantly expanded, for the first time, its ability to impose secondary sanctions across five sectors of the Iranian economy—digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping. Foreign individuals and companies operating in these sectors or providing services to them now face the risk of sanctions.
“Any entity that facilitates money laundering or sanctions evasion on behalf of Iran risks being cut off from the U.S. financial system,” states the U.S. Treasury Department’s position, as noted by Pronin.
According to the head of the State Financial Monitoring Service, transactions with intermediary companies from third countries, entities with opaque ownership structures, cryptoassets and exchange services, alternative payment channels, “shadow fleet” vessels, as well as payments for goods and technologies where the ultimate recipient may be an Iranian entity.
At the same time, sanctions risk may arise even in the absence of a company’s direct relationship with Iran—through a counterparty, correspondent bank, carrier, beneficial owner, or final recipient of the goods.
Under these circumstances, the State Financial Monitoring Service recommends strengthening sanctions screening of counterparties and their beneficiaries, analyzing the origin and destination of payments, verifying banks and payment intermediaries, monitoring the end users of goods and technologies, and monitoring transactions involving digital assets.
The United States continues to expand Operation Economic Outcast. On September 10, OFAC tightened its licensing policy regarding transactions with Iran, establishing a presumption of denial for special licenses except in a limited number of cases, and imposed new sanctions against networks linked to Iran-backed entities.
In addition, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced that the administration is preparing sanctions against another major, as-yet-unnamed bank as part of efforts to increase financial pressure on Tehran.
Dnipropetrovsk Oblast ranks first in Ukraine in terms of the number of sole proprietors working in the retail sector—as of early September 2026, 46,400 such sole proprietors were registered in the region, according to data from Opendatabot and its analysis by the Experts Club think tank.
In second place is the Odesa region with 44,500 entrepreneurs, followed by Kyiv with 43,900. Next are the Lviv region with 40,700 and the Kharkiv region with 40,600.
The top five regions are as follows:
1 Dnipropetrovsk region 46,400
2 Odesa Oblast 44,500
3 Kyiv 43,900
4 Lviv Oblast 40,700
5 Kharkiv Oblast 40,600
Collectively, these five regions alone account for about 216,000 entrepreneurs, or roughly one-third of all sole proprietors in the Ukrainian retail sector.
Nationwide, there are 659,090 sole proprietors working in the retail sector. The most common types of retail are sales in non-specialized stores—208,000 entrepreneurs—sales at markets and from stalls—159,900—and off-premises sales, including online—107,400.
In 2026, the number of entrepreneurs in the retail sector is growing again. Over the course of eight months, 8,196 more sole proprietorships were registered than were closed, whereas in 2025 the sector showed negative growth.
Source: Opendatabot study dated September 11, 2026. Opendatabot — regional structure of sole proprietorships in retail trade
As of early September 2026, 659,090 sole proprietors were operating in the retail sector in Ukraine—that is, nearly one in three registered entrepreneurs in the country—according to data from the Unified State Register cited by Opendatabot.
After a decline in 2025, the number of entrepreneurs in retail began to grow again. From January through August 2026, 8,196 more sole proprietors were registered in the sector than ceased operations.
The trend in recent years has been uneven. In 2021, 2022, and 2025, the number of business closures in the retail sector exceeded the number of new registrations. The most challenging year was 2022, when the net loss amounted to nearly 25,000 entrepreneurs.
The most common sector remains retail in non-specialized stores—this is the business of about 208,000 sole proprietors, or 32% of all retail entrepreneurs.
Another 159,900 entrepreneurs, or 24%, work in markets and sell from stalls. About 107,400, or 16%, make sales outside of stores, including online.
Thus, about three-quarters of Ukrainian retail entrepreneurs are concentrated in just three major formats—non-specialized stores, market trade, and sales outside of brick-and-mortar retail outlets.
The Dnipropetrovsk region has the highest number of sole proprietors in the retail sector—46,400. It is followed by the Odesa region with 44,500, Kyiv with 43,900, the Lviv region with 40,700, and the Kharkiv region with 40,600.
The Opendatabot study was published on September 11, 2026, and is based on data from the Unified State Register.
Original source: Opendatabot—nearly one in three sole proprietorships operates in retail
#Ukraine #SoleProprietorship #Retail #Entrepreneurship #Trade
The Ministry of Communities, Territories, and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine (MinRegion) proposes introducing a quality guarantee of at least 10 years for new real estate properties immediately after they are put into operation; the government has already supported this initiative, according to the ministry’s press service.
MinRegion clarified that, to implement these changes, it is proposed to amend the Civil Code of Ukraine and the laws “On the Regulation of Urban Development” and “On the Protection of Consumer Rights.”
“A person who purchases a new property should be protected not only at the time of purchase. We propose introducing a quality guarantee for the property lasting at least 10 years. If, during this period, the owner discovers defects that affect the property’s serviceability, they will be able to require the developer to remedy them. If the owner corrects the defects on their own, the developer must reimburse those costs,” said Deputy Minister Natalia Kozlovska, whose remarks are quoted in the press release.
The construction client or its successor in title will be responsible for the quality of the property during the warranty period.
The new rules will apply to completed properties that have been accepted for use, with the exception of properties built on the basis of a construction passport and certain properties with minor SS1 consequences, where the work was performed in-house.
The ministry’s press service reported that, following the adoption of the amendments, if defects are discovered during the 10-year warranty period, the owner must notify the construction client of them. Defects that affect the normal use of the property must be confirmed by a report from a certified specialist based on the results of an inspection. The construction client must, within 30 days, propose how and by when to remedy the defects, or provide a reasoned refusal. The owner must, within seven days, either agree to the proposed solution or reject it. Once agreed upon, the client must remedy the defects within the specified time frame. The owner may also remedy them independently or engage other specialists. In such a case, the construction contractor must fully reimburse the repair costs.
A similar initiative was included in government bill No. 13607 dated August 7, 2025, but following the resignation of Yulia Svyrydenko’s government, it was withdrawn on July 16, 2026. At that time, experts proposed extending the mandatory warranty to include SS1 buildings (most often private homes) and increasing the warranty period for monolithic-frame buildings to 30 years.
Ukraine’s Cyber Police have urged citizens not to use the services of dubious intermediaries who offer, via the internet, to exchange old paper driver’s licenses for modern documents without visiting Ministry of Internal Affairs service centers.
According to law enforcement officials, scammers post offers on social media and messaging apps, promising to issue a new license entirely online. To do this, they may demand an advance payment, as well as photos of the passport, driver’s license, and other documents.
As a result, citizens risk not only losing money but also receiving a counterfeit license, the details of which are not recorded in government registries, the Driver’s Cabinet, or the “Diya” app. Furthermore, copies of documents provided to scammers may later be used for other illegal activities.
The Cyber Police remind the public that paper-booklet-style driver’s licenses issued in Ukraine before 1991 remain valid within the country. There is no mandatory requirement to replace them. If you wish to obtain a modern-style license, you must contact a Ministry of Internal Affairs service center and complete the official procedure.
Law enforcement officials list the following as signs of potential fraud: communication exclusively via messaging apps; promises to issue a license entirely online; offers to “enter data into the database” without following the official procedure; demands to transfer an advance payment to a private bank card; and requests to send photos of a passport or other documents.
You should exercise particular caution if the person you’re communicating with claims to be an employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs service center but suggests conducting all procedures via social media or a private chat.
Official government services are not provided through random social media pages and do not require you to share personal documents with unknown individuals, the Cyber Police emphasize.
If a citizen discovers a suspicious post or has already sent money or personal information to scammers, law enforcement recommends saving the correspondence, links, phone numbers, and other evidence, and then contacting the police or submitting an online report via the Cyber Police website.
Additional information on common scams is available on the “Kyber Brama” portal, and official information on driver’s license exchanges can be found on the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Main Service Center.
Source: Cyber Police of Ukraine.
CYBER POLICE, Driver, fraud, Ministry of Internal Affairs, UKRAINE
Turkey intends to participate in the Caspian Sea–Black Sea–Europe energy corridor (Black Sea Energy) project, which is designed to ensure the supply of “green” electricity from the South Caucasus to the European Union market, said Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar.
According to him, the project involves connecting the power grids of Azerbaijan and Georgia, followed by the transmission of electricity via an undersea cable across the Black Sea to Romania and on to Hungary. At the invitation of the Azerbaijani side, Turkey expressed its intention to join the initiative and supported its implementation.
Ankara’s interest in the project is also confirmed by preliminary negotiations with Baku. On August 1, Azerbaijan’s Minister of Energy Parviz Shahbazov reported following a meeting with Bayraktar in Istanbul that the parties had discussed Turkey’s potential cooperation within the framework of the “Caspian–Black Sea–Europe” energy corridor and had also agreed to accelerate the implementation of other joint energy projects.
According to Bayraktar, cooperation between Turkey and Azerbaijan in the electricity sector is currently developing along three fronts.
The first involves integrating Nakhchivan’s power grid with Turkey’s and organizing electricity exchanges. In the future, this route could be connected to the main territory of Azerbaijan via the Zangezur Corridor.
The second direction is the “green” energy corridor connecting Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, and Bulgaria. It is intended to facilitate the export of renewable electricity generated in Azerbaijan through Georgia and Turkey to Bulgaria and onward to EU markets. In August 2026, Baku and Ankara separately agreed to accelerate the implementation of this project.
The third initiative is Black Sea Energy itself. The main participants in the project remain Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania, and Hungary. The four countries signed an agreement on strategic partnership in the development and transmission of “green” energy in Bucharest on December 17, 2022. The European Union supports the project, viewing it as a new supply route for renewable electricity from the South Caucasus to the EU.
In July 2026, the project moved to the next phase of implementation following the completion and approval of feasibility studies. The project operator, Green Energy Corridor Power Company, has begun developing the conceptual design, engineering solutions, and procurement strategy.
According to recent statements by the Azerbaijani side, the plan is to gradually export up to 3.9–4 GW of green electricity through the corridor, starting in 2032. The project has also been included in the TYNDP 2026 portfolio of the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E).
A key infrastructure element will be a high-voltage subsea direct-current cable between Georgia and Romania. The preliminary construction cost is estimated at approximately 3.5 billion euros, with a construction period of three to four years. It was previously reported that up to 2.3 billion euros in European funding could be secured. However, in the latest Global Gateway documents, 2.3 billion euros is also cited as the indicative investment amount for the strategic Black Sea electricity interconnector, so the final financing structure for the project is still to be finalized.
The European Commission views Black Sea Energy as one of the tools for diversifying the EU’s energy supply and integrating renewable generation from the South Caucasus. The project is intended to connect the Caspian Sea region to the European power grid via Georgia and Romania, while also strengthening the energy resilience of the participating countries.
If Turkey joins, the project will take on additional significance, as Ankara will be able to participate in several parallel transmission routes for Azerbaijani “green” electricity to Europe—via the Black Sea and via the Turkey–Bulgaria overland corridor.
