Key facts
- Ukraine's largest corruption scandal in years involves a $100 million money-laundering and bribery scheme.
- The scheme implicated high-ranking officials and associates close to President Volodymyr Zelensky, largely through state-owned Energoatom.
- Timur Mindich, a close Zelensky associate, was charged with money laundering and organized crime and fled Ukraine.
- Mindich allegedly retained influence over the nationalized Sense Bank even after fleeing and being sanctioned.
- Leaked recordings suggest Mindich asked current Chief of Staff Kyrylo Budanov to take control of Sense Bank.
- Lawmaker Davyd Arakhamia denied seeking to influence Sense Bank after being mentioned in leaked tapes.
Ukraine's largest corruption scandal in years, uncovered last November, has yielded little result despite a wave of arrests, sanctions, and a political shakeup. Revelations over the past few weeks suggest the influence network associated with Timur Mindich, a close associate of President Volodymyr Zelensky, is broader than initially known and has persisted.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) uncovered a $100 million money-laundering and bribery scheme implicating high-ranking officials and associates close to Zelensky, largely through the state-owned energy company Energoatom. Mindich, a co-owner of Zelensky's Kvartal 95 production company, fled Ukraine shortly before NABU charged him with money laundering and organized crime, and Zelensky sanctioned him. Then-Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak was also dismissed amid the fallout.
New evidence, including NABU recordings leaked in August, suggests the influence network reached into courts and law enforcement through separate corporate-raiding and money-laundering schemes, allegedly carried out in part by former deputy head of the presidential office Iryna Mudra. The recordings also indicate that Mindich retained significant influence even after his flight and despite being sanctioned.
One key indication of Mindich's continued influence is the fate of Sense Bank, a state-owned company formerly owned by Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman. According to NABU recordings and reporting by Ukrainska Pravda, the bank came under the informal control of Mindich and Yermak. Transcripts of conversations published in April and May mentioned discussions with Yermak regarding the bank and influencing board appointments. Mudra reportedly led the nomination committee selecting independent members of Sense Bank's board in May 2025.
Newly surfaced tapes suggest Mindich's control over the bank continued well past his flight in November 2025. Tetiana Shevchuk, a lawyer at the Anti-Corruption Action Center, believes Mindich was the informal overseer of Sense Bank through June 2026. Transcripts suggest Mindich asked current Chief of Staff Kyrylo Budanov to take control of the bank, with Mudra recounting Mindich's concerns about cash flows and asking Budanov to "Take the bank under your control." Budanov, when asked about alleged references to him in the tapes, stated, "Let the court sort it out."
Indications also suggest other political figures may have been involved. Mudra reportedly mentioned on tapes that a certain "David" and an unidentified head of a parliamentary committee were seeking to influence Sense Bank. Lawmaker Davyd Arakhamia, leader of Zelensky's party, denied any involvement when asked about the "David" mentioned on the tapes.