Ukrainian businessmen Sergei Groza and Vladimir Naumenko illegally sold through a number of gaskets companies the property of the Olympex terminal, which was pledged by American funds. The Vostok and Pivdenniy banks helped them with this. UNN tried to figure out how businessmen tried to trick investors.
GNT Group, owned by Groza and Naumenko, received $75 million on November 12, 2019. an investment loan from the American fund Argentem Creek Partners (ACP) for the development of the Olympex terminal in the Odessa region. They opened two credit lines for $ 50 and $25 million, respectively, with a maturity date of December 5, 2021. Thus, the property of the Olympex terminal turned out to be pledged to the ASR. The Fund had a comprehensive security package for the capital of the GNT Group, allowing the Americans to establish control over the business of Groza and Naumenko in case of non-repayment of the loan.
Businessmen understood that sooner or later they would have to return American money or lose business, but apparently they did not like this prospect. They didn't come up with anything better than trying to dump the investor and keep control of the Olympex terminal.
In order to pull off the scam, Groza and Naumenko needed accomplices in the banking sector. And who will understand the inhabitants of Odessa better than the inhabitants of Odessa?
As sources close to Odessa businessmen told UNN, Groza and Naumenko did not have to look for long, much less persuade bankers. Yuri Rodin, the owner of the Pivdenny Bank, as well as his influential friend, the head of the Servant of the People faction in the Odessa local Council and, in parallel, Vadim Morokhovsky, the head of the board of the Vostok Bank, agreed to help them.
Morokhovsky previously worked at Pivdenny Bank, from where he later moved to Vostok Bank and is probably well acquainted with the schemes by which businesses try to get away from annoying creditors.
Groza and Naumenko pretended to actively develop the Olympex terminal, throwing dust in the eyes of the Americans, and in parallel, in 2020, they took loans from Pivdenny and Vostok secured by the terminal's property, which was already pledged by the American fund.
The loan was issued by the Olympex Coupe International company, which is part of the GNT Group, with the help of Ferko and Vtormetexport companies, which are also controlled by Groza and Naumenko.
After that, on January 28, 2021, Groza and Naumenko took out another investment loan, but from another American fund - Innovatus Capital Partners. The loan was issued in the amount of $ 20 million secured by double coverage of grain and corporate rights on equal terms with the ASR. GNT Group pledged 100% of the authorized capital of Olympex Coupe International to the American company, with a total value of $176.6 million.
American funds began demanding that Groza and Naumenko repay the loan funds in 2022. Realizing that the trap was beginning to close, Groza and Naumenko also came up with a plan to throw a second American investor. They most likely sold the pledged grain abroad, and the Americans were told that it had deteriorated and needed to be disposed of. By the way, the Bureau of Economic Security is investigating several criminal cases against the companies Groza and Naumenko on "gray" grain exports and tax evasion.
After it became known about the demands of the funds to return the loan funds, Ukrainian banks entered the game.
While Groza and Naumenko were negotiating with the Americans about postponing the loan and tried their best to convince them that they really wanted to repay the loan, but now there is no money, the terminal's property began to be sold.
In particular, on December 2, 2022, Vostok Bank, controlled by Morokhovsky, began the procedure for recovering the terminal's property under a loan agreement with GNT Group. Vostok demanded a refund despite the fact that the loan term expired on March 25, 2023.
In January 2023, the bank Pivdenniy joined the Vostok. The financial institution has urgently initiated the recovery of half of the grain terminal "Olimepks" under the mortgage agreement. It is noteworthy that Groza and Naumenko were supposed to repay the debt to the "Fifth" already in 2024.
Almost immediately, Rodin sold half of the terminal for only 3.6 million dollars to Sunolta Corm, which is part of the Sunolta group of enterprises.
On February 10, 2023, Vostok Bank transferred the right of claim to a part of the property under its loan agreement with GNT Group to FC Solutions Factor LLC. The right to claim the second part of the property under this loan was bought by LLC Affordable Finance.
Then there was a very interesting, and most importantly, a very fast "game of thimbles" with the property of the terminal.
On the same day, February 10, Solutions Factor transferred the right of claim to Affordable Finance. This company, without delaying matters, on the same February 10, sold for part of the real estate of the Olympex terminal to Sunolta Ou, which is also part of the Sunolta group of enterprises. Affordable Finance, in particular, sold the Dry Port of the terminal for $ 4.7 million at an estimated cost of $ 18 million. Thus, the Sunolta group, we can say for a penny, received the Dry Port of the terminal and other property.
At the end of March, Sunolta Ou registered Grain Port LLC in order to transfer the Dry Port of Olympex to this company on April 10.
On the same day, another company of the Sunolta group, Sunolta Corm, alienated half of the Olympex grain terminal, purchased through the Pivdenniy Bank, in favor of Attollo Granum LLC controlled by Groza and Naumenko, which was registered on March 16, 2023.
It should be noted here that the value of the alienated terminal assets was UAH 163.2 million, and the company had to pay for them by November 10, 2023.
Now American funds are trying to recover the terminal's property through international and Ukrainian courts, as well as to return their money. A court in England has already frozen the assets of Groza and Naumenko.
Recall
According to journalists, the Atoll Granum company actively cooperated with the famous Ukrainian smuggler Vadim Alperin, against whom the NSDC imposed sanctions in 2021, and who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship.
As proof of their cooperation, the journalists published a photo of the consignment note, according to which Attollo Granum shipped wheat to the Alperina Agiros company.
In addition, businessmen Sergei Groza and Vladimir Naumenko also forced the ex-director of the Olympex grain terminal to cooperate with Alperin.
You can read more about the conflict over the Olympex grain terminal in the article: "Groza and Naumenko's company GNT Group blocked the operation of the grain terminal in Odessa. Detailed chronology of the conflict"