Despite statements by National Bank of Ukraine Governor Andrii Pyshnyi about hundreds of successful transactions to the account of the High Anti-Corruption Court to pay bail, lawyers report numerous cases of payments being delayed and returned. According to "Sudovo-Yurydychna Hazeta", banks are delaying and returning payments, as well as demanding additional documents, UNN writes.
The publication "Sudovo-Yurydychna Hazeta" suggests that problems with transferring bail payments may be related to the "personal situation of the head of the National Bank and the possibility of influence on him by NABU".
Earlier, the media reported that Andrii Pyshnyi's surname appears in the materials of criminal proceeding No. 52025000000000150, related to former prosecutor Kostiantyn Kulyk and funds of Oschadbank, which was previously headed by the current head of the National Bank. Pyshnyi has not been served with a notice of suspicion, but on October 1, Member of Parliament Yaroslav Zhelezniak announced the opening of proceedings regarding the possible provision of false testimony by the NBU Governor to the parliamentary Temporary Investigative Commission.
In addition, the NABU and SAPO operation "Forrest Gump" dealt an additional blow to the reputation of banking supervision; according to the investigation, it involved the legalization of UAH 150 million in bail funds through Sense Bank. After public statements by Member of Parliament Danylo Hetmantsev regarding the regulator's approval of the bank's supervisory board members, Pyshnyi explained the situation in the Verkhovna Rada on August 20.
"The NBU Governor found himself in a situation where NABU has leverage over his official position. In such a situation, every hryvnia of bail in the HACC account becomes a personal risk for the NBU Governor: after ‘Forrest Gump,’ it was he who had to answer. It is easier not to approve a single payment than to risk one's position. Therefore, in our opinion, banks were made to understand that it was better not to process such payments, while society is being shown UAH 141 million of ‘success.’
Who benefits from this? First and foremost, the prosecution. The head of the regulator, regarding whom NABU reportedly has materials, is unlikely to argue with the bureau, and pressure on him is, in our opinion, entirely possible. And a person who continues to remain in custody solely because the court-ordered bail cannot be posted for them is much more ‘open’ during interrogations. The defense believes that this is precisely how pressure is created on suspects in order to obtain the testimony that is needed from them," journalists from "Sudovo-Yurydychna Hazeta" stated.
As the publication writes, citing information from the defense, 70 participants made 139 attempts to make payments totaling UAH 117.2 million, but only about 16% of the total amount—UAH 18.9 million—was credited. In 26 cases, bail providers were unable to deposit a single hryvnia. There were also 42 refusals at cash desks or in banking applications, 13 returns of payments already accepted, totaling UAH 13.7 million, and 14 cases in which banks refused to establish or continue banking relationships.
At the same time, NBU Governor Andrii Pyshnyi reported that during August and September 2026, banks carried out 527 transactions to deposit bail into the HACC account, totaling more than UAH 141 million. According to him, this included 178 cash transactions totaling UAH 64 million and 349 non-cash transactions totaling UAH 77 million. Another UAH 4.5 million, he said, was received by October 10.
However, these statistics do not reflect the number of payments that banks refused to accept, delayed, or returned.
"Sudovo-Yurydychna Hazeta" provides specific examples of cases in which bail could not be posted. In particular, on October 14, one of the bail providers transferred UAH 395,000 through Raiffeisen Bank, providing the court ruling, a tax return, and an account statement. However, as of October 16, the funds had not reached the HACC and had been returned to the payer.
In another case, a relative of a suspect transferred UAH 292,100 obtained as a loan secured by a car. PrivatBank returned the payment, citing allegedly incorrect details. Another payment of UAH 151,000 was initially accepted by the bank but later returned. A second attempt to deposit UAH 150,000 in cash also did not result in the funds being credited to the court as of October 16.
Attorney Oleksandr Babikov also confirmed the problems with posting bail in a comment to UNN. According to him, over the past month and a half, attorneys have repeatedly complained about difficulties transferring funds in criminal proceedings related to corruption offenses.
Some banks are refusing to continue cooperating with individuals who have already posted bail
According to the attorney, such situations create risks for the right to a defense, since a delay in posting bail may result in a person remaining in custody even though they could be released on bail.
Attorney Oleksandr Babikov suspects that the systemic problems may be related to requirements or actions by the financial regulator that affect banks’ decisions.
At the same time, I cannot assert what specific role NBU Governor Andriy Pyshny is playing in this. If such events are occurring systematically, one may assume that someone is coordinating these processes. But I do not know for certain who is behind this or from whom the relevant instructions originate. We can only speculate
If the version about instructions from the NBU governor is confirmed, the question will arise as to whether regulatory mechanisms are being used to exert informal influence on banks and, through them, on the possibility of posting bail in cases considered by the HACC. The information on whether banks received relevant instructions or recommendations, and who may have initiated them, also requires separate verification.
If it is established that officials gave instructions to delay or block payments for personal reasons, this could raise questions about the legitimacy of the use of official powers and the independence of banking regulation.
The editorial office will contact the NBU for an explanation regarding the reasons for the delays and returns of payments, the existence of recommendations to banks, and the possible role of the regulator’s leadership. UNN will also contact NABU regarding information about a possible investigation into Andriy Pyshny.