The ICU Case and Kravchenko's Resignation: Serhiy Lyamets's Version of Events
Former NBU Governor Valeria Gontareva and the current co-owners of the ICU Group, Makar Pasenyuk and Kostyantyn Stetsenko, may be counting on the new prosecutor general to close the investigation involving individuals and companies linked to ICU. This could have intensified the media pressure surrounding Ruslan Kravchenko’s resignation as Prosecutor General—a theory put forward by Serhiy Lyamets, former editor of “Ekonomichna Pravda.”
In his opinion, ICU is unlikely to be influential enough to single-handedly orchestrate the Prosecutor General’s resignation through the NABU, civic activists, or the media, but it could have been one of many interested parties. Lyamets cites reputational and business risks as the motive: the group operates not only in Ukraine but also in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Cyprus, and the United Arab Emirates, and the criminal case threatens future projects by Pasenyuk and Stetsenko.
This refers to criminal case No. 62025000000000954, opened on September 23, 2025. The State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) investigated the actions on the grounds of Part 2 of Article 364 and Parts 1 and 2 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code—specifically, possible financial ties with representatives of the Russian Federation and abuse of power. According to Lyamets, 13 SBI employees and five prosecutors at various levels worked on the case, and the case files mentioned the group’s structures in Ukraine, Cyprus, and the British Virgin Islands. In January 2026, the Office of the Prosecutor General sent requests for international legal assistance to the Netherlands, Cyprus, and the BVI.
The journalist claims, citing his sources, that the investigative team’s work was effectively suspended: in February 2026, the Prosecutor General allegedly ordered the removal from the investigation of the team of prosecutors handling international requests, and in the summer, reports emerged about a possible partial withdrawal of those requests. Lyamets has no official confirmation of the reasons behind this decision; he also mentions unverified information about an alleged offer of $500,000 to drop the case, but emphasizes that he was unable to confirm this.
As a reminder: On September 7, Kravchenko submitted his resignation amid an investigation by NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) into possible “protection” of fraudulent call centers by prosecutors. On September 14, Zelenskyy suspended him from office, and on September 15, the Verkhovna Rada approved his dismissal by a vote of 317 to 0.
