The NBU allowed the owners of "Nova Poshta" to buy "BTA Bank" — what comes next

The National Bank of Ukraine approved Volodymyr Popereshniuk and Viacheslav Klymov’s joint acquisition of an indirect qualifying holding of 100% in the authorized capital of JSC "BTA BANK" through a number of companies in the Nova group, UNN reports, citing the NBU.

According to the National Bank, the direct acquisition of a qualifying holding of 100% in the authorized capital of JSC "BTA BANK" was approved for NovaPay Invest LLC.

This decision was adopted by the Board of the National Bank of Ukraine on November 12, 2026, following a comprehensive analysis of the applicants’ document packages.

The acquisition of JSC "BTA BANK" will mark the beginning of the Nova group owners’ plans to establish a financial inclusion bank.

Currently, the controller of JSC "BTA BANK" is a citizen of Kazakhstan, Kenes Rakishev, who indirectly owns 100% of the bank’s authorized capital.

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Background

A financial inclusion bank is a new type of financial institution in Ukraine that, on the basis of a limited banking license, will provide access to high-quality and secure financial services in areas with special conditions. In particular, this concerns frontline and de-occupied territories, where security risks mean there are no bank branches and remote banking channels do not operate fully due to communication disruptions.

According to World Bank estimates, the level of financial inclusion (the population’s access to financial services) in Ukraine was only 84% in 2021, or 11 percentage points below the target of 95%. The full-scale invasion exacerbated the problem of access to high-quality financial services due to the reduction in the network of bank branches and ATMs as a result of their destruction or suspension of operations.