The CEO of Ukrposhta has responded to Nova Poshta's acquisition of a bank
Ihor Smilianskyi, CEO of Ukrposhta, responded to reports that the Nova Group is in active negotiations to acquire BTA Bank with the aim of establishing Ukraine’s first financial inclusion bank.
The head of the state-owned postal operator stated that he is proud of the passage of the relevant law, despite the fact that his company may lose its lead in this process.
News of the potential deal by competitors has caused a significant stir among experts and partners of the state-owned company.
According to the head of Ukrposhta, many people expressed their support and surprise at this turn of events in the market.
Many noted that Ukrposhta had fought for this right for many years, so handing the initiative over to a private entity seems unfair.
“The main messages were roughly along these lines: ‘How can this be? You fought for this law and this right for so many years, and now the bank will go to Nova Poshta. This is unfair.’ So I have to comment briefly,” the head of Ukrposhta emphasized.
He added that the primary goal of the reform is to help citizens, not to satisfy the ambitions of a specific company.
“Because we drafted this law to solve the problem of millions of people who lack access to financial services—veterans and people with disabilities who cannot access them at home, and people in frontline regions where there are no banks or ATMs. To solve the problem of millions of Ukrainians, not Smelyanskiy and Ukrposhta, as the NBU and its leadership have positioned it,” noted the head of Ukrposhta.
At the same time, Ihor Smelyanskiy expressed some skepticism regarding the ability of a private operator to fully meet the needs of the country’s remote regions.
In his opinion, “Nova Poshta” will not be able to reach a large number of people due to the lack of specific infrastructure. The state-owned company has over 10,000 mail carriers and an extensive network of mobile branches, which private businesses currently lack.
“As for the question of why the NBU has consistently found reasons not to grant ‘Ukrposhta’—or more precisely, Ukrainians—a financial inclusion bank, I think it’s already clear,” Smiliansky concluded. It should be noted that the state-owned enterprise has been trying to obtain a banking license from the regulator for over ten years, but has consistently faced official rejections.
Ihor Smelyansky outlined his position in detail on his official Facebook page.
Nova Poshta may open Ukraine’s first financial inclusion bank
Earlier, the Ukrainian logistics company Nova Poshta announced an ambitious global expansion. By the end of 2026, the company’s branches and services will be available in China and Canada, and by 2028, the network will cover 16 more European countries. This was announced by Nova co-owner Vyacheslav Klimov during the Nova Summit.
