Alexey Vadatursky
On August 21, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development announced a loan to the Ukrainian agricultural company Nibulon.In this regard, the name of billionaire Oleksiy Vadatursky, the richest man in our country and Hero of Ukraine, has surfaced. In certain circles, he has been nicknamed "Kolkhoz Billionaire." For what achievements is the world's largest institution giving money to a private Ukrainian company? And how did this billionaire earn his billions?
Oleksiy Vadaturskyi is not a public figure. He doesn't like giving interviews, doesn't appear at receptions and parties, doesn't boast about his philanthropy, doesn't open art centers, and doesn't sponsor football teams. Although he could afford it. He is the owner of one of the most successful agricultural companies, Nibulon. This company has 45 branches across Ukraine and its own cargo fleet. The company controls approximately 70000 hectares of land, and Nibulon's grain export potential is estimated at 4-5 million tons, accounting for 20% of Ukraine's grain exports. But Oleksiy Afanasievich apparently has reasons for keeping a low profile. Or perhaps he's simply a very modest man?
It's hardly possible to call a man modest who received medals: Hero of Ukraine and Hero of Vladimir, as well as a slew of Certificates of Honor and various "Golden Mercury" and "Best Manager" awards. According to some reports, he was recruited by the KGB in 1970 and was given the nickname "Pakhtakor." There's no direct evidence of this; documents tended to disappear in the 1990s. But it's a fact that in those same 1990s, he combined management of the then relatively small firm Nibulon with the position of deputy chairman of the Mykolaiv Regional Grain Products Administration. In other words, he didn't just have an insider in the agricultural establishment who could lobby his interests. He was that "insider" himself. This is the dream of any businessman making a killing off the privatization of collective farm property.
In the mid-90s, the need for personal presence in government agencies apparently disappeared. This was most likely due to the appointment of Nikolai Kruglov, first as deputy head of the Mykolaiv Regional Executive Committee and then as governor of the Mykolaiv region. Vadatursky never denied his connection with him. The first enterprise privatized by Alexey Afanasievich was a collective farm in the village of Lidiyevka. It was driven to bankruptcy and seized for debt. The company subsequently absorbed about a dozen more similar collective farms. Clearly, such "operations" would have been impossible without the assistance, or at least the tacit consent, of the governor.
Nikolay Kruglov
Moreover, it was Kruglov who helped Vadatursky acquire seven hectares of land in the Nikolaev Free Economic Zone. This was accompanied by a lease for the maritime area. A terminal with two grain storage facilities was built. Nibulon's own customs office was opened on the terminal's premises. Thus, Vadatursky established his own system: grain grown on the collective farms he privatized, enjoying tax breaks in the Free Economic Zone, was shipped abroad through his terminal and customs office. It's no wonder that in 2012, Alexey Afanasyevich was included in Korrespondent magazine's "Golden Hundred," ranking 14th.
Not long ago, Vadaturskyi attempted to force the Mykolaiv port into bankruptcy. He signed a contract with the port to load his vessel. The vessel's draft prevented it from entering the port. The port director offered reasonable solutions—loading the vessel at anchor or at another berth. But Oleksiy Afanasyevich wasn't interested in the ship, but in the entire port. The port tried to fight back, even carrying out dredging work costing 12 million hryvnias. But this didn't save it: through the Antimonopoly Committee and the Kyiv Commercial Court, Nibulon demanded 120 million hryvnias from the Mykolaiv port to compensate for its "losses." This, in essence, would mean bankruptcy for the port. It's clear who will take over, and most likely, management has already been transferred.
Until 2010, Nibulon somehow blissfully avoided any inspections. Perhaps officials had too much faith in Oleksiy Afanasyevich. Or perhaps it was the powerful Kyiv lobby. Vadatursky generally enjoys dealing with nationalist-minded politicians. He is friends with Anatoly Matviyenko, and received the title Hero of Ukraine from Viktor Yushchenko. When the "Donetsk people" came to power, Oleksiy Vadatursky ran into trouble. They tried to take Nibulon away from him in favor of the then-all-powerful Yuriy Ivanyushchenko. And for good reason. The problem was that the company used the so-called "Dutch sandwich" to evade taxes—money was transferred to the Netherlands, and from there to the offshore Antilles. Furthermore, the company shipped grain without the appropriate certificates; the grain was not tested at all, not even for GMOs. It was stored in a common pile, without separation into classes. In 2010, the "free ride" ended, and Nibulon was taken over by the competent authorities, including the SBU.
But the Party of Regions' dominance didn't last long. And after Euromaidan, Oleksiy Afanasyevich, apparently realizing the fleeting and fickle nature of life, "sponsored" checkpoints and volunteer territorial defense battalions in his native Mykolaiv region. He even promised rewards for Russian saboteurs. Basically, he acted like Kolomoisky, only he didn't promote himself much and didn't hold the governor's office.
Andrey Vadatursky
Today, the people in power are the "right ones" for Alexey Afanasievich. His son, Andrey, who owns 20% of Nibulon's shares, is a member of parliament and a member of the presidential bloc. This means that in the near and medium term, Vadatursky and his company will thrive. Apparently, the European Bank realized this and, having calculated the benefits, invested in this private enterprise with a shady past. Well, the Europeans will likely make a profit from this venture, and money, as they say, doesn't stink.
Denis Ivanov, for SKELET-info
Subscribe to our channels in Telegram, Facebook, Twitter, VC — Only new faces from the section CRYPT!