The security forces’ actions against Ferrexpo may be motivated by the intention to gain control over the international company's assets in Ukraine.
Obozrevatel reports that economist Borys Kushniruk writes about this in his blog.
"What's happening with Ferrexpo, namely numerous criminal cases, absurd claims, and wild amounts of bail, is not a unique case for Ukraine. Despite all the scandals and promises of the current government, the pressure of the security forces on the remaining businesses in the warring country continues to increase. It was as if there had been no assurances from the top officials of the state, who pretended to understand that Ukraine must rely on its own strength. In particular, in ensuring the stable operation of domestic enterprises that finance the budget and, ultimately, the Armed Forces with taxes," the expert says.
In his opinion, the example of Ferrexpo is interesting because the security forces are destroying one of the largest Ukrainian corporations, whose shares are traded on the London Stock Exchange, in order to either establish control over it or force its owners to "share" their profits with them. Kushniruk notes that Ferrexpo continues to operate in Ukraine, develop its facilities and pay taxes.
"The company announced the launch of new production facilities worth $80 million and announced its intention to electrify its open pit fleet. Such actions during the war and government pressure indicate that the owners may have more faith in Ukraine than its leaders," the economist says.
According to the expert, the company's shares continue to decline as the stock market reacts to the state's actions against the company: "The fact that Ferrexpo's shares are falling due to the actions of security forces, not the company's internal problems, is Polischinel's secret to Western investors. However, Western governments, unlike the Ukrainian one, take business into account. And when our security forces, in the interests of the government, are "robbing" not only Zhevaho, but, for example, one of the world's largest investment corporations, BlackRock, and others, it is no wonder why Ukraine has problems getting aid from the United States," the economic expert says.
He reminds that by prosecuting Ferrexpo, the authorities are hitting a business that has invested $3.5 billion in Ukraine. According to Kushniruk, this money would be a support for the country's budget. However, according to him, it is more important for the authorities to gain control over the company's assets than to allow it to operate and replenish the budget.
"The actions against Ferrexpo are virtually one-for-one with all the other similar cases mentioned above. And the goal is the same: either to pay or to hand over the assets. Moreover, Zhevaho himself confirmed that he had been extorted for dropping the criminal prosecution. I wonder if they also thought of writing a letter with demands to BlackRock," the expert writes.