The Chinese company COFCO, one of the largest players in the Ukrainian grain market, has found itself at the center of a scandal after allegations of involvement in large-scale financial schemes. According to lawyer Kyrylo Yakovets, who made public statements, the company's structure uses fictitious grain transactions, which leads to budget losses of tens of billions of hryvnias every year.
According to Yakovets, COFCO's activities are allegedly being covered up by officials from the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, the Tax and Customs Service, and certain representatives of the judicial system. He claims that the company uses offshore schemes and cryptocurrency to launder money.
After the publication of these statements, the CEO of the Ukrainian office of COFCO Volodymyr Osadchuk filed a lawsuit against the lawyer, accusing him of spreading false information. Yakovets himself calls the lawsuit an attempt at pressure and emphasizes that he provided facts that require an official investigation.
COFCO management has not publicly commented on the allegations. The government agencies mentioned in the statement have also not yet announced an investigation.
