Yanukovych’s legacy in the MIA system: how "Crystalbank" earns millions on state commissions

Yanukovych’s legacy in the MIA system: how "Crystalbank" earns millions on state commissions

«Crystalbank» in MIA Service Centers: How Public Services Became a Source of Private Profit.

The situation with payments in the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) service centers has long gone beyond minor inconveniences and increasingly resembles a well-established financial scheme. Citizens constantly face the need to overpay a 10–15% commission to private banks for public services. At the same time, such expenses are not legally mandated — they arise due to artificially created circumstances. Employees of the MIA service centers «overlook» the possibility of payment through cheaper methods and effectively direct people straight to bank cashiers, inevitably increasing the final amount on the receipt, reports ORD.

In informal conversations, bank representatives openly confirm this practice without creating any illusions, while the National Bank of Ukraine avoids direct comments, hiding behind vague phrases about «market mechanisms» and «contractual relations.» However, in reality, this looks like an imposed service embedded directly into the state system.

«Crystalbank» is not the only player in this scheme. Other banks, such as «Asvio Bank,» also operate in MIA service centers. However, «Crystalbank» stands out due to the scale of its presence. Out of 25 branches listed on the bank’s website, 17 are located directly in MIA service centers — in Kyiv, Odesa, Chernivtsi, Lviv region, Dnipro, Bila Tserkva, and other cities. In 2023, the bank announced the opening of eight more locations in MIA service centers. This is too organized to be considered a coincidence.

The head of the MIA service center on Pavlo Usenko Street, 8 in Kyiv, Valeriy Delikatny, publicly states that the center is «not connected to the bank,» and the latter merely rents the premises. Formally, this may be true. But in essence, it raises doubts. In Ukrainian realities, renting space in a state institution with a constant flow of clients and guaranteed commission income does not happen by itself. It is always the result of specific decisions, agreements, and someone’s interests.

Interestingly, «Crystalbank’s» presence in MIA service centers coincided with the reform of the MREV (Interdistrict Registration and Examination Departments) in 2016. At that time, the bank proudly announced in its news: «The first MIA service center of the new format is serviced by PJSC “CRYSTALBANK.”» As the network of MIA service centers expanded, so did the bank’s influence. Meanwhile, no competitions, open selections, or real alternatives for citizens have ever emerged.

The main question is — why haven’t MIA service centers yet implemented direct cashless payments through state systems, as has been done, for example, in the SE «Dokument»? Why does the scheme with cash, private bank cashiers, and inflated commissions persist? The answer is obvious: a 10–15% «extra» is too attractive an income to give up voluntarily. A more tricky question is — what portion of these commissions, and to whom exactly, goes further along the chain? And whether bankers pass on their share to Klymenko’s office.

The history of «Crystalbank» adds a special flavor to the situation. Until 2014, it was known as «Terra Bank» and belonged to the former head of the NBU, Kyrylo Shevchenko, and Vadym Kopylov — an official from the Yanukovych era who held high positions in Azarov’s government. The bank was considered a tool for financial manipulations of Yanukovych’s «family» and was liquidated after the regime’s fall. In 2015, the Deposit Guarantee Fund of Individuals created «Crystalbank» on its basis. Formally, Maryna Lening — Kopylov’s wife — became the owner, while he himself headed the Supervisory Board. Already in 2016, the renewed bank integrated into a key sphere — servicing the reformed MIA service centers.

Too many coincidences, too stable a cash flow, and too convenient a scheme to consider it accidental. While citizens pay «for convenience,» public services continue to serve as a platform for private earnings. And the question is no longer directed at the banks — they are simply profiting. The question is for those who allowed this business to be integrated directly into the MIA system and have turned a blind eye to what is happening for years.