De-oligarchization of banks: how independence from big business makes the system stronger

Let's imagine three models of the banking system: an oligarch bank, a bank with a strong foreign corporate decision-making center, and an independent Ukrainian commercial bank. Each strives for stability, transparency, and customer trust, but the paths to achieving this differ. Rejecting oligarchic influence provides a significant advantage in the stability of the financial system, reports UNN.

RADABANK is an example of a family bank that, under the leadership of Tetiana Horodnytska, is steadily growing and confidently expanding its presence throughout the country. Tetiana Ihorivna Horodnytska is the majority shareholder and Chair of the Supervisory Board of JSC "AB "RADABANK". In 2011, she became the Chair of the Supervisory Board of RADABANK, and since 2021, its majority shareholder. The bank's model lacks related-party lending, its ownership structure is transparent, and its strategy is aimed at long-term development and support of local communities — factors that enhance customer and partner trust. The bank has received numerous awards for deposit programs, digitalization, and lending during wartime, including "Bank of the Year", "Leader of Financial Reliability", and "Savings Bank for the Population" awards. Its positions are confirmed by high reliability and stability ratings; in particular, RADABANK ranks 27th among Ukrainian banks by asset size, according to the NBU.

The oligarchic model (a classic example is PrivatBank before nationalization) functions as part of an industrial-financial empire. Such integration provides advantages to owners but increases systemic risks: insider lending, concentration of risks, and intertwining of business interests with politics. The consequence is that when the owner's problems become the bank's problems, they are shifted to society; PrivatBank was nationalized, and the state recapitalized it with a significant amount, which underscores the systemic risks of the oligarchic model.

The corporate foreign model (for example, Raiffeisen Bank Ukraine within the structure of an Austrian holding) brings professional management according to European standards, access to capital and international experience, compliance with Basel III, IFRS, and ESG requirements. At the same time, the decision-making center in Vienna limits local autonomy, slows down the implementation of innovations, and makes the unit sensitive to the parent company's decisions and currency risks.

RADABANK's experience shows that independence from oligarchs and large industrial groups creates a competitive advantage: the absence of related-party lending improves asset quality and reduces risk concentration; a transparent structure fosters trust; efficient local management accelerates the implementation of technologies and products that meet regional needs. Family and regional banks also more actively support local initiatives and volunteer projects, which adds reputational value and customer focus. Under the leadership of Tetiana Horodnytska, RADABANK actively participates in volunteering and charity: the bank organizes fundraising for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, territorial defense, and the National Guard, provides hospitals with medicines and personal protective equipment, supports social and educational projects, including the Kiddo and "Scholarship in Ukraine" foundations.

De-oligarchization of the banking system is a long-term process aimed at creating a competitive environment where banks are evaluated based on service, professional management, and transparency, rather than on the owner's influence. An independent regional bank can be stable, customer-oriented, and socially responsible, transforming independence into financial strength. In a world where customer trust is the most valuable resource, independence often proves to be the best investment for the bank and for the market as a whole.