This happened after the funds won a lawsuit against the previous owner of the terminal – the Ukrainian company GNT Group, according to the RBC publication with citing the Financial Times.
The reason for the appeal to the judicial authorities were accusations of fraud on the part of the Ukrainian company. However, the Ukrainian company denies all the accusations and claims that the terminal was “raided” by an investment fund from the USA.
According to the case materials, GNT Group fraudulently obtained a $20 million loan from Innovatus, using a scheme with distortion of data on grain collateral and subsequent “imitation of destruction” of “spoiled products”. In turn, the Ukrainian owner of the terminal claims that it was the US funds that used the loans to “raid” their property.
At the same time, the FT points to the assistance of Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s administration to the US funds in the process of recovering the $95m debt from the Ukrainian company. However, the head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, Andriy Yermak, claims that their role in resolving the legal dispute “was purely coordinating”.
After gaining control over the grain terminal in Odessa, a representative of the US investment funds noted Ukraine’s investment potential, but emphasized that it needed to get rid of its reputation as a country where doing business carries a high risk of fraud.
