The organizers of the first International “Charitable Italy – Ukraine” Competition (Sostenitori dell’Ucraina in Italia) have extended the deadline for submitting applications through October 5, 2026, the Association of Ukrainian Philanthropists announced.
The announcement of the results and the awards ceremony are scheduled for late October 2026. The competition is being held as the international stage of the National Competition “Charitable Ukraine-2025: Charity in Defense of Ukraine.”
The goal of the initiative is to recognize charitable and volunteer organizations, informal communities, socially responsible businesses, and individuals in Italy who provide humanitarian, financial, social, educational, and cultural assistance to Ukraine and Ukrainians.
The organizers also hope that the competition will help strengthen the Ukrainian community in Italy and foster cooperation among volunteers, charitable organizations, businesses, and local communities that support Ukraine.
Eligible participants include charitable, volunteer, and civic organizations; formal and informal associations; socially responsible companies; and individuals who are located or registered in Italy and provide support to Ukraine.
Applications may be submitted not only by the philanthropist or organization itself. Ukrainian aid recipients, as well as any legal entities or individuals who consider a specific candidate worthy of the award, may also nominate Italian volunteers and organizations.
The competition features four categories: “Philanthropist of the Year—Non-Governmental Organization,” “Philanthropist of the Year—Individual,” “Ukrainians for Their Homeland,” and “Goodness Starts with You.” The latter category is intended for children’s and youth initiatives aimed at assisting Ukraine and fostering a culture of philanthropy.
Applications are accepted in Ukrainian or Italian. The completed application form can be sent in Word format to the organizing committee’s email address, konkurs@blagoukraine.org, or submitted via the online form.
The Italian-Ukrainian cultural association Futura Nostra in Rome serves as the organizing partner for the competition in Italy.
The Ukrainian Philanthropists Association announced the first “Charitable Italy – Ukraine” competition, to be held in late May–early June 2026. The deadline for submissions was originally set for September 1, but the organizers decided to extend the campaign by more than a month.
In January–August 2026, Ukraine increased imports of aluminum and aluminum products by 31.7% compared with the same period last year, reaching $453.439 million.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine, aluminum and aluminum product imports totaled $64.792 million in August.
Exports of aluminum and aluminum products in January–August of this year rose by 25.3% compared to the same period last year, reaching $123.934 million; in August, they totaled $14.369 million.
As previously reported, in 2025 Ukraine increased imports of aluminum and aluminum products by 15.3% compared to 2024, reaching $514.098 million. Exports of aluminum and aluminum products in 2025 rose by 22.9% to $152.919 million.
Aluminum is widely used as a structural material. The main advantages of aluminum are its light weight, formability, corrosion resistance, high thermal conductivity, and the non-toxic nature of its compounds. In particular, these properties have made aluminum extremely popular in the production of cookware, aluminum foil in the food industry, and for packaging. The first three properties have made aluminum the primary raw material in the aviation and aerospace industries (though it has recently been displaced by composite materials, primarily carbon fiber). After construction and packaging production—aluminum cans and foil—the energy sector is the largest consumer of this metal.
For a more detailed overview of global aluminum production from 1970 to 2024, watch the video on the Experts Club YouTube channel.
ALUMINUM, EXPERTS CLUB, EXPORTS, IMPORTS, METALLURGY, UKRAINE
In August 2026, the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) fined PJSC “USG Insurance Company” 30.8 million UAH for violating legal requirements regarding the prevention and counteraction of money laundering and terrorist financing. According to the regulator, the violations concerned the improper organization and conduct of initial financial monitoring.
In particular, the NBU identified shortcomings in the company’s internal documents regarding financial monitoring, the conduct of due diligence on customers, and the application of a risk-based approach.
The regulator also pointed out shortcomings in the additional screening of politically exposed persons (PEPs), as well as in the provision of information and documents to the National Bank upon its requests.
In addition to the fine, the insurance company received a written warning for violating requirements regarding the preparation and submission of statistical reports on financial monitoring.
The enforcement actions against SK “USG” were part of a series of measures taken by the NBU in August against one bank and four non-bank financial institutions. The total fines imposed by the regulator on the five companies exceeded 50 million UAH.
Specifically, the NBU simultaneously fined the state-owned “Ukrgasbank” 17.6 million UAH, “Max Credit” LLC 1.08 million UAH, “FC Goal” LLC 391,000 UAH, and “Zaporizhsvyazservis” PJSC 255,000 UAH.
USG Insurance Company has been operating in the Ukrainian insurance market for over 20 years. The company was founded in 2000 and has been part of the international Vienna Insurance Group (VIG) since 2008. The company is 100% foreign-owned and operates in the main segments of non-life insurance, including auto insurance, property insurance, liability insurance, travel insurance, and corporate risk insurance. Pavlo Nelga serves as Chairman of the Board.
In January–August of this year, Ukrainian companies increased their imports of copper and copper products by 13.3% in monetary terms compared to the same period last year—to $139.044 million.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service of Ukraine, exports of copper and copper products rose by 22.7% over the eight-month period, reaching $75.529 million.
In August, copper imports totaled $15.771 million, while exports totaled $9.646 million.
As previously reported, in 2025, Ukrainian companies increased imports of copper and copper products by 23.2% in monetary terms compared to 2024—to $173.453 million—while exports of copper and copper products rose by 17.7%—to $103.848 million.
Copper is widely used in electrical engineering, in the manufacture of pipes, for creating alloys, in medicine, and in other industries.
Previously, the Experts Club information and analytical center released a video on global copper production and leading producing countries – https://youtube.com/shorts/_h8iU50z8C0?si=a-XkgGEfeUxseQNa
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ranked 21st in the 2026 ranking of the 50 most influential Jews in the world, compiled by the Israeli newspaper The Jerusalem Post.
In the overall table, The Jerusalem Post calls Zelensky “the Jewish face of Ukrainian resistance,” while a separate article about the Ukrainian president is titled: “The Jewish president who became the face of Ukraine’s resistance.”
The authors of the ranking note Zelensky’s role in leading the country during the full-scale war with Russia, advancing Ukraine toward membership in the European Union, and developing new approaches to warfare, in particular drone technologies.
The Jerusalem Post also draws attention to the Jewish origins of the Ukrainian president and repeated attempts by the Russian authorities to combine accusations of “Nazism” against Ukraine with the fact that its president is Jewish.
The publication recalls that Zelensky’s relatives were killed during the Holocaust, while his paternal grandfather fought against Nazi Germany during World War II. Zelensky himself has repeatedly said that his Jewish background is part of his biography but does not define his political activity.
Zelensky has repeatedly appeared in The Jerusalem Post’s annual ranking. In 2022, after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, he took first place, and the publication then named him the most influential Jew of the year. In the 2024 ranking, the Ukrainian president was in 23rd place. Thus, in 2026 he rose by two positions compared with the ranking two years earlier.
The Jerusalem Post gave first place in its 2026 ranking to Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. Every year, the publication includes politicians, entrepreneurs, scientists, public figures, representatives of the technology industry, culture and religious organizations who, in the editorial board’s assessment, exert significant influence on global processes.
Primary source — The Jerusalem Post, 50 Most Influential Jews of 2026 ranking.
Law enforcement officials have uncovered a large-scale scheme involving the illegal production and distribution in Ukraine of the counterfeit weight-loss drug “Biopatid,” in connection with which 27 individuals have been notified of their status as suspects, according to a Sunday announcement by the press service of the Office of the Prosecutor General on its Telegram channel.
According to the investigation, the suspects include the scheme’s organizer and owner of the underground laboratory, the owner of a well-known Kyiv clinic, a customs broker, laboratory workers, packagers, sales and advertising managers, as well as other participants in the criminal activity.
The cost of the main ingredients was about $17, while the finished product was sold for up to $1,200. According to preliminary data, products totaling more than $5 million have been manufactured since the beginning of this year.
“The mastermind behind the scheme, aware of the high demand for weight-loss drugs and the high cost of medications containing the active ingredient tirzepatide, decided to set up his own illegal ‘pharmaceutical business.’ To this end, he set up an underground laboratory where a generic version of the drug was manufactured without any permits or quality control,” according to a statement released by the press service.
The raw materials were subsequently used in the underground laboratory. The participants in the scheme created a website and social media pages, recruited sales managers, and actively advertised the drug.
They offered it to beauty salons, clinics, and healthcare professionals in various regions of Ukraine. Bloggers, actors, and other public figures were also enlisted to promote the product.
As part of the criminal investigation, law enforcement officers conducted more than 250 authorized searches at locations where the counterfeit drug was manufactured, stored, sold, and distributed, as well as at hospitals and cosmetic clinics.
Investigative actions were carried out in Kyiv and the Kyiv region, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Poltava, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Mykolaiv, Rivne, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, and Chernihiv.
During the searches, investigators seized the counterfeit drug and raw materials used in its production, equipment from an underground laboratory, packaging materials and finished printed materials, documentation and drafts, as well as cell phones and computer equipment.
Law enforcement officers also seized cash in various currencies totaling nearly 15 million hryvnias, luxury cars, and other property.
The issue of imposing preventive measures on all suspects is currently being resolved.
The investigations were conducted by prosecutors in collaboration with SBU officers.
In accordance with Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent of a crime and may not be subjected to criminal punishment until their guilt has been proven in accordance with the law and established by a court conviction.
