Privat Group

The Privat Group, or PrivatBank Group (Ukrainian: Група “Приват”, Grupa "Privat") is a global business group, based in Ukraine. Privat Group controls thousands of companies of virtually every industry in Ukraine, the European Union, Georgia, Ghana, Russia, the United States and other countries. Steel, oil & gas, chemical and energy are sectors of the group's prime influence and expertise. None of the group's capital is publicly traded on any stock exchange.

The business group was grouped around Privatbank. On 18 December 2016 this bank was nationalized by the government of Ukraine, taking 100% ownership.[1]

The group is controlled by the billionaire businessmen Henadiy Boholyubov, Oleksiy Martynov, and Ihor Kolomoyskyi (the latter is the richest and leading partner that is best known to the public).[2]

As a business-oligarch entity, Privat Group controls some prominent Ukrainian media, maintains close relations with politicians, and sponsors professional sports.

Key businesses of the group (including the Privatbank itself) are based in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, which is regarded as its "homeland". The group's founding owners, natives of Dnipro, made their entire careers there.

Structure

The businesses of Privat Group are not formally included in a corporation, and its top managers sometimes state that there is no such group at all.[3] However, either PrivatBank or "Privat-Intertrading" company indirectly own all companies regarded as parts of the group. Typically, industrial companies are controlled through a complicated chain of offshore companies. Despite this, the Ukrainian public has a clear understanding of what exactly belongs to the group. To describe such relations, the media use the wording “company X is controlled by the Privat Group" or "the business of the X company is being organized by the PrivatBank". The group never denies such statements.

Steel industry

Various steel companies form the core of the Privat Group, presenting a full manufacturing chain of metallurgy. This oldest and most important part of the group is mostly located in and around Dnipro (location specified in parenthesises below).

Ore mining and processing companies

Ferroalloy mills

Apart from its ferroalloy-ore assets, Privat Group has stakes in all three of Ukraine's ferroalloy mills and controls two of them.

Steel mills

Oil industry

According to the media, Privat Group owns significant shares in Ukrnafta and NPK Halychyna, controlling their business. Ukrnafta is the half-state-owned national oil company, dealing with extraction of petroleum and gas condensate, as well as retailing gasoline through its large gas station network. NPK Halychyna owns and operates an oil refinery in Drohobych, Lviv Oblast.

The group also recently acquired control over Illichivsk Fuel Terminal Company, operating the oil & petrol terminal in the Black Sea port of Illichivsk.

Chemical industry

The group owns Kamianske based chemical plant "Dniproazot" with 1000000 tons per year of ammonia capacity and 750000 tons per year of urea capacity.

Food industry

Privat Group owns the Dnipro-based “Biola” soft drinks company.

The group may also control sugar beet processing plants throughout Ukraine.

Energy industry

In 2005, Privat Group bought controlling shares in five companies that fully control electricity distribution in Ivano-Frankivsk, Poltava, Sumy, Chernihiv and Lviv Oblasts. The names of these companies are the name of the respective oblast with the -oblenergo ending, e.g. “Poltavaoblenergo”.

Banking

Privatbank, was the core of the group, as the largest commercial bank in Ukraine. On 18 December, 2016, the bank was nationalized by the government of Ukraine, taking 100% ownership.[1]

Media

Privat Group officially controls the Privat-TV regional television channel in Dnipro. Ihor Kolomoyskyi, one of the group's co-owners, brought a court suit demanding the right to purchase a controlling stake in Channel 1+1, a popular nationwide TV company.[2] According to media, Privat Group also controls the UNIAN news agency.[2]

Sports

Privat Group indirectly owns FC Dnipro professional football club as well as the HC Budivelnyk hockey and BC Budivelnyk basketball teams.

Real estate

They own 2/3rd of Optima Ventures, a Miami-based real estate investment firm led by Chaim Schochet.[4] Optima owns more than 5 million square feet of real estate in the United States and is the largest holder of real estate in Downtown Cleveland[4] owning One Cleveland Center;[5][6] 55 Public Square;[5] the Huntington Bank Building;[7] and the Penton Media Building.[4]

Relations and controversies

Privat Group is involved in a permanent and fierce business conflict with Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Pinchuk and his Interpipe Group. The groups are based in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, sharing a long and complicated history of relations. Presently, the conflict focuses on the bilaterally owned Nikopol Ferroalloys Plant (Interpipe now controls the plant’s business). Both sides apply full-scale legal, public relations and political methods in the conflict. Ihor Kolomoyskyi (the main owner of Privat Group) and Pinchuk sometimes insult each other in their interviews.

Henadiy Korban, one of Privat Group's top managers, survived serious assassination attempts in former Dnipropetrovsk in March 2006, and again in September 2010.[8]

Before the Orange Revolution, Privat Group had been widely regarded as relatively uninvolved in politics, but loyal to the Leonid Kuchma regime. After the government change, the group's owners, according to media, became close allies of Yulia Tymoshenko (although she publicly denies this). Analysts agree that some of Tymoshenko's decisions as the Prime Minister of Ukraine supported Privat side in conflicts.

Some sources state that Privat Group provided significant financial support for Viktor Yuschenko during his presidential campaign and subsequent Orange Revolution.

See also

References

Inline
  1. 1 2 Ukrainian government nationalizes PrivatBank - KyivPost
    Ukraine's biggest lender PrivatBank nationalised, BBC News (19 December 2015)
  2. 1 2 3 Colossi With Feet of Clay, The Ukrainian Week (22 February 2013)
  3. ↑ "The Privat group considers itself non-existing at all. The ghost register for the semi-gost group is a normal situation.""Attempt №7". Zerkalo Nedeli. September 3–9, 2005.in Russian, in Ukrainian
  4. 1 2 3 Cleveland Plain Dealer: "The most important guy you've never heard of: Chaim Schochet, 25, builds downtown Cleveland empire" By Michelle Jarboe McFee February 04, 2012
  5. 1 2 Blumberg Capital Partners: "Optima International Purchases More Cleveland Property" 2008]
  6. ↑ McFee, Michelle Jarboe (May 16, 2008). "One Cleveland Center sold for $86 million". The Plain Dealer. cleveland.com - Cleveland Live LLC. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  7. ↑ Crain's Cleveland Business: "Huntington Building in downtown Cleveland sold to Florida's Optima International" By STAN BULLARD June 23, 2010
  8. ↑ http://www.zn.ua/1000/1050/70538/
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