Justice for Sale: How Supreme Court Judge Kibenko Is Blocking Ukraine’s $1.2 Billion Case Against Zhevago

A major court case against Ukrainian oligarch Kostiantyn Zhevago, in which the Deposit Guarantee Fund of Ukraine (DGF) seeks to recover ₴46 billion (approx. $1.2 billion) in damages, has been stalled for more than two years. Since January 2023, the first-instance commercial court has failed to consider the case on its merits — Zhevago’s legal team has blocked progress through a stream of formal complaints and appeals. A key figure in this obstruction is Olena Kibenko, a justice of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, who systematically rules in Zhevago’s favor.

Delaying Tactics by the Book

The DGF demands compensation for large-scale asset stripping from Zhevago’s now-defunct Finance & Credit Bank, executed via offshore shell companies between 2011 and 2015. The loans were issued ostensibly as advance payments for goods that were never delivered. The lawsuit was in preparation since 2015, with over 300,000 pages of documentary evidence. The amount at stake exceeds $1.2 billion.

Not a single substantive hearing has taken place. Zhevago’s defense is applying classic legal obstructionism — challenging every procedural step, fully aware that the Supreme Court is sympathetic to his interests.

Olena Kibenko: The Judge on Speed Dial

Justice Olena Kibenko currently oversees all appeals filed by Zhevago’s legal team. Legal analysts note she has repeatedly ruled in his favor — even against the opinions of fellow justices, as in the high-profile Bila Tserkva TPP (thermal power plant) case.

Kibenko is personally and professionally linked to Anna Ohrenchuk, a managing partner at LCF Law Group, which, according to public records, represents Zhevago. Ohrenchuk is also the wife of Andriy Dovbenko, a former official at the Ministry of Justice and a person of interest in several anti-corruption investigations. Both currently reside abroad.

Ohrenchuk’s firm was mentioned in a high-level bribery scandal: according to Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), her colleagues delivered a $2.7 million bribe to then–Chief Justice Vsevolod Knyazev in exchange for a favorable ruling in a Ferrexpo case — a London-listed iron ore mining group controlled by Zhevago. Justice Kibenko, despite being indirectly involved in the same network, still presides over cases involving the oligarch.

Seized Assets and Public Auctions

While the court proceedings are stalled, the DGF has pursued asset recovery through interim measures. Ukrainian courts have frozen Zhevago’s indirect stakes in three major iron ore mining and processing plants — the Poltava Mining and Processing Plant (PGOK), Yeristovo Mining, and Bilanivske Mining — all part of the Ferrexpo Group.

In parallel, the DGF has put up for auction debt claims of the former Finance & Credit Bank worth ₴2.4 billion ($60+ million), listed on Ukraine’s Prozorro.Sale platform — the country’s transparent public procurement and asset sale system.

Blocking Justice: How the Zhevago Case Exposes Judicial Capture in Ukraine

The Zhevago case is a defining test for Ukraine’s judiciary. At a time of war, when public finances are under immense strain, the inability to advance a lawsuit worth ₴46 billion is perceived as an internal sabotage of the national interest. As long as justices like Olena Kibenko remain immune to scrutiny, justice in Ukraine will remain paused — especially for the powerful.