“Oschadbank may lose billions due to ARMA's tender for Gulliver: what went wrong
Kyiv • UNN
The ARMA announced a tender for the management of the Gulliver shopping center without taking into account the interests of state-owned banks. Oschadbank risks losing more than UAH 20 billion due to the possible termination of loan payments from the owner of the shopping center.
The Asset Recovery and Management Agency is looking for a manager for the Gulliver Business and Construction Center in Kyiv. However, the terms of the tender do not provide for servicing loans in state-owned banks. Thus, if this asset is transferred to management, Oschadbank alone risks losing more than UAH 20 billion. UNN analyzed why this happened and what consequences it will have.
Details
On October 30, ARMA Head Olena Duma announced that a tender for the selection of a manager for Gulliver had been announced. However, after analyzing the tender documentation, it becomes clear that the tender did not take into account the position of state-owned banks at all.
As you know, the building of the mall is pledged as collateral for a mortgage loan from Oschadbank and Ukrsibbank. The owner of Gulliver is TRI O, and it is currently paying off the debt to the banks. If the asset is transferred to a new manager, the company will lose its only source of income and will not be able to repay the loan, and the state bank will be left without payments on its debt obligation.
This has been repeatedly stated by Oschadbank itself. In particular, Arsen Miliutin, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Oschadbank in charge of NPLs, emphasized that if Gulliver is transferred to a new manager, all payments on the loan will stop and it will remain outstanding, which is detrimental to the interests of the state-owned bank.
Oschadbank's losses due to the suspension of loan payments could reach more than UAH 20 billion. This could be a serious loss for Ukraine's banking system, especially as the government attempts to improve its financial stability.
Thus, the terms of the tender for the management of Gulliver without taking into account the interests of state-owned banks raise the question: is this initiative in the interests of the state and how can banks get their money back?
