Agrarian Andriy Verevskyi. The success story of a former Party of Regions and BYuT member

Agrarian Andriy Verevskyi. The success story of a former Party of Regions and BYuT member

One of the most hidden and mysterious Ukrainian oligarchs is the co-founder of Ukraine’s largest agricultural holding "Kernel" and former member of parliament for four terms, Andriy Verevskyi.

He practically does not appear in Ukraine, managing his business from Switzerland. Having been a member of parliament for more than 10 years, he managed to create a successful business, which he lobbied for in the Verkhovna Rada. He was removed from his parliamentary position before the start of the revolution in Ukraine. In essence, it did not affect him at all—Verevskyi continues to "make money" on the agricultural potential of our country.

"Young Agrarian"

Andriy was born in 1974 in Poltava. He attempted to acquire higher education at the Poltava Institute of Engineering and Construction but it did not work out—he went to work instead. Besides that, he studied at Oxford College and graduated from the National Agrarian University in 2001. He owes his start-up capital to his father—Mykhailo Verevskyi, a large entrepreneur and owner of several enterprises related to the agricultural sector. Notably, Mykhailo was under the protection of the leader of the Socialist Party, Oleksandr Moroz, for a long time and was even the head of his election campaign headquarters in the 1998 elections. These political connections greatly helped Verevskyi Sr. in conducting business. And it also reflected on Andriy Verevskyi because there is no other way to explain his rapid career growth. A 19-year-old student who studied at the institute for only a year was immediately appointed to a managerial position at the Poltava branch of the state company "Khlib Ukrainy" (engaged in the purchase and storage of grain under state orders). He worked there for almost 5 years while simultaneously building his own business empire.

In 1998, Andriy took the position of Deputy General Director of the company "Zernoexport," and a year later became Deputy Director for Commercial Affairs at the enterprise "Transagroinvest." In 2002, before entering big politics, he was the chairman of the supervisory board of the plant "Soniashnyk," which he cleverly "acquired" back in 2000.

"Acquisition" of the "Soniashnyk" plant

In May 2000, the bank "Aval" unexpectedly refused to extend the financial agreement with the plant "Soniashnyk" and demanded the repayment of a loan amounting to 5 million UAH. The refinancing of the plant was refused. But then, like a prince on a white horse, Andriy Verevskyi appeared with a proposal to pay off the company’s debts in exchange for 40% of its shares. The management, after a little thought, agreed, but later it turned out that in addition to these 40%, Verevskyi also concentrated another 11% of the shares, which gave him controlling interest over the entire enterprise. A scandal arose, and Andriy had to sell the "excess" shares to the management of "Soniashnyk." A few days later, he mortgaged the same shares to "Ukrsotsbank" to obtain a three-month loan. Notably, the amount of this loan was nine times less than the value of the mortgaged shares. Seeing the opportunity to profit, the management of "Ukrsotsbank" blocked these shares, leaving the "new" owners with nothing. At the same time, Verevskyi put forward demands to the plant’s management: a complete change of management and full control over it. Andriy appointed Viktoriya Matkovska, the wife of the then head of the Poltava tax administration, as the director of the plant.

At the same time (of course, purely by chance), law enforcement became interested in the asset distribution of "Soniashnyk," whose interests (again coincidentally) aligned with Andriy’s financial plans. At that time, endless inspections of the plant’s activities began, the results of which were not reported to the management. Even the General Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine got involved, with actions clearly showing Verevskyi’s hand, as after each subsequent inspection, he would come to the resisting management and persuade them that until they handed him the controlling stake, the prosecutor’s office would not relent. He offered to "friendly" resolve all their problems with a single phone call. And as we can see today, they eventually gave in, and Andriy gained control over yet another enterprise.

The asset-stripping mechanism in the Poltava region used by Verevskyi (according to the publication "Dzerkalo Tyzhnya")

Politician-turncoat

Andriy Verevskyi quickly realized that politics excellently helps in resolving business matters, so in 2002 he ran for elections as an independent candidate from the 146 electoral district (Poltava region). Becoming a member of parliament, Andriy went through all the party "beds," starting with Leonid Kuchma’s "United Ukraine," joining the "Regions of Ukraine," the Bloc of Yuliya Tymoshenko, and ending with the "Party of Regions." The fact that the title of member of parliament brings enormous benefits for business became clear to Verevskyi during the financial crisis of 2008 when the parliament led by Yuliya Tymoshenko introduced quotas on oil exports. Despite the bans, Verevskyi’s firms continued to export their products, and even increased their volume. Competitors in this situation could only bite their nails.

Along with his political career, Andriy Verevskyi’s business also developed. In 2004, consolidating all his assets, he created Kernel Holdings S.A., which included elevators, grain terminals, oil extraction plants, and bread factories. Each year, the company "Kernel" became stronger and its profits grew visibly. Over time, it became a leader in the Ukrainian sunflower oil market (brands "Chumak," "Shchedryi Dar," "Stozhar").

One of the few public appearances of Andriy Verevskyi 

Over time, Andriy realized that the government in the country would soon change, and left the Bloc of Yuliya Tymoshenko, joining the "Party of Regions." And just in time, as they, upon coming to power, also introduced quotas on the sale of grain abroad. Verevskyi’s lightning-fast decision to "change political views" gave him the opportunity to operate "beyond" these quotas. 

Expelled from the Rada "for absenteeism"

In the spring of 2013, the Higher Administrative Court decided to strip him of his parliamentary mandate, thereby satisfying the lawsuit of the then speaker of the parliament, Volodymyr Rybak. The official version was that Andriy Verevskyi violated the law "On the Status of a People’s Deputy" by combining work in the land issues committee with a managerial position in the holding "Kernel." It was alleged that he used the elective position for his own interests. According to another unofficial version, the regions thus demonstratively tried to strengthen discipline within their ranks so that faction members would not skip meetings (Verevskyi was the most notorious absentee, as he practically lived in Switzerland, managing his business from there). In fact, Andriy wanted to expand his business by taking a loan in Europe. The problem was that Ukrainian politicians were not very trusted there, and practically every dollar they received or gave away was scrutinized. Essentially, he was faced with a choice: either renounce the mandate and get the loan or remain an MP but not get the loan he needed. For him, as a business-politician rather than a politician-businessman, the choice was obvious.

During the four terms he was elected a member of parliament, he managed to take control of virtually all elevators in the Poltava region. Essentially, he became Ukraine’s "grain" monopolist, as he was the only one with the right to store grain, had priority shipping rights, and free storage. To all of this should be added the ability to obtain any bank loan against the collateral of elevators he owned, as well as friendships with regional leadership and the management of "Ukrsotsbank."

Andriy Verevskyi is one of the smartest businessmen who has created an aura of mystery around himself as the most successful agrarian businessman of modern times. He carefully monitors the rumors spread about him, not allowing them to grow into anything more than rumors.

Dmytro Samofalov, for SKELET-info