[45758] Exposure of the 'Mindich tapes': Suspicion of government officials' involvement in the control of national assets

The 'Mindich tapes' affair: Exposure of illicit ties in centers of power

Ukrainian media outlets have published a series of recordings known as the "Mindich tapes", which they claim reveal how associates of Andriy Yermak, former Chief of Staff to the President of Ukraine, gained influence over the management of national assets following their nationalization. According to the investigation by "Ukrainska Pravda", the brothers Andriy and Vasyl Vasyli used their connections to take control of "Sense Bank" and the "Karpatnaftochim" plant.

According to reports in Lachen пише and 24 Канал, Vasyl Vasyli was appointed as an advisor to the bank's CEO despite his lack of experience in the banking sector, and was even referred to by business people as a "supervisor" (smotryashchiy) on behalf of the Presidential Office, without whom no substantive decisions were made. In the recorded conversations, the transcripts of which were distributed by various sources, Vasyli and Alexander Zuckerman are allegedly heard discussing appointments to the Supervisory Board of "Sense Bank," while noting that the board members "must be under their control." Lachen пише even noted that in 2025 alone, the salary cost of these board members amounted to 58 million hryvnia.

On the other hand, there is a political controversy surrounding the affair. Цензор.НЕТ, which emphasizes in its coverage positions critical of the government while supporting war efforts, quotes Mindich's lawyer, Andriy Kostenko, who claims that this is "informational manipulation" and illicit pressure. According to the defense, the authenticity of the recordings has not been proven and they have not been made available to them as part of the criminal proceedings.

At the same time, political figures close to the administration are trying to fend off the allegations. Member of Parliament Yuliia Bohutska from the "Servant of the People" faction claimed in Цензор.НЕТ that journalist Mykhailo Tkach is trying to "disrupt the President's course of action" and is interpreting the facts in a biased manner in order to link Yermak and President Zelensky to the affair without concrete evidence.