The National Bank of Ukraine found violations in Ukrposhta's work with UAH 11.9 billion in cash

The National Bank of Ukraine discovered transactions with cash worth UAH 11.9 billion at Ukrposhta, which could have signs of legalization of funds of unknown origin

The National Bank during the inspection of "Ukrposhta" found cash transactions amounting to UAH 11.9 billion, which could be related to the legalization of funds of unknown origin. The regulator said the postal operator did not do enough to check where the large sums of cash were coming from and who was actually depositing them. "Ukrposhta" denies accusations of money laundering and explains that it simply accepted cash from companies and credited it to bank accounts.

It is reported Liga.net with reference to NBU inspection materials.

Where did UAH 11.9 billion come from?

According to the NBU, in 2022–2023 Ukrposhta received UAH 11.4 billion from six private companies. Among them are "Metapey", "Paybox", "Electrum Payment System", "Global Money", "Contract House" and "Swift Garant".

These companies worked, in particular, with payment terminals. They handed over cash to Ukrposhta, which was then credited to bank accounts.

Another part of the operations, according to the inspection data, was related to cash from terminals EasyPay and City24.

Why did the NBU see the risks?

The problem, according to the regulator, was not only large sums, but also that how exactly did this money get to "Ukrposhta".

The NBU recorded cases when:

• - large amounts of cash were accepted at night or early in the morning, when branches were closed;

• - one person could bring money to branches in different regions during the day;

• - large sums were withdrawn from individual payment terminals several times a day;

• - among the cash there were many UAH 500 bills with consecutive numbers;

• - inconsistencies were found in the documents about the origin of the money.

According to the NBU, "Ukrposhta" should have better checked these transactions and the origin of the funds, but did not conduct proper financial monitoring.

How much did "Ukrposhta" receive

The company paid a commission to Ukrposhta for accepting cash. However, for six companies it was significantly lower than the standard - from 0.001% to 0.1% instead of 0.2%.

As a result, "Ukrposhta" received approx UAH 8.7 million commission.

According to NBU calculations, if the standard rate were applied, the operator could receive approx UAH 22.8 million.

What does "Ukrposhta" say

Ukrposhta categorically denies that it helped launder money.

The head of the company Ihor Smilyanskyi explained that "Ukrposhta" actually performed the function of a collector. That is, companies brought her cash, and the postal operator credited these funds to their bank accounts.

According to him, it was the money of companies that were under the control of the NBU. In particular, it was about cash from payment terminals.

Smilyansky believes that it was the banks that should have checked the origin of such funds.

After checking, "Ukrposhta" changed the rules

Despite its position, after checking the NBU "Ukrposhta" stopped accepting cash proceeds from enterprises.

That is, the company no longer wants to take on the risks associated with accepting large amounts of cash from the business.

Previously, the NBU fined "Ukrposhta" for UAH 17.39 million for violation of financial monitoring requirements. The company did not appeal the fine and paid it.

What is the main problem

The essence of the NBU's claims boils down to one thing: the regulator believes that Ukrposhta should have better controlled large cash transactions and checked their origin.

At the same time, the very fact of carrying out operations for 11.9 billion UAH does not automatically mean that Ukrposhta laundered these funds. The regulator talks about the signs and shortcomings of financial monitoring, while the company denies involvement in illegal activities.