The President of Ukraine enacted sanctions of the National Security and Defense Council against Arbuzov, Klyuyev, Shevtsova and Polishchuk
On April 12, 2025, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed Decree No. 231/2025, which implemented the decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine regarding the application of personal sanctions to four persons. The former head of the National Bank of Ukraine Serhiy Arbuzov, former People’s Deputy Serhiy Klyuev, businessman Viktor Polishchuk — the former owner of the Gulliver shopping and entertainment center in Kyiv — and the head of the Supervisory Board of Ibox Bank and its shareholder Alyona Shevtsova were included in the sanctions list.
The decision of the National Security and Defense Council states that the sanctions were imposed on the basis of proposals prepared by the Security Service of Ukraine. Among the restrictive measures are the blocking of all assets that are under the jurisdiction of Ukraine, a ban on conducting any economic or financial activity on the territory of the state, as well as the deprivation of state awards, if any.
The decree enters into force from the moment of its official publication, which is indicated in the message on the official website of the head of state. The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleksandr Litvinenko is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the NSDC decision.
It will be recalled that Serhiy Arbuzov held the post of Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine in 2012-2014 and was previously the head of the National Bank. Serhiy Klyuyev, the brother of Andriy Klyuyev, the former head of the Administration of President Yanukovych, served as the first deputy prime minister in the government from 2010 to 2012. Both appeared in the materials of British intelligence, which in 2022 included them in the list of persons connected with the Russian special services.
Alyona Shevtsova, according to Forbes, was able to bring Ibox Bank to the list of the most profitable financial institutions of Ukraine in 2022 due to schemes related to the gambling business. Already in 2023, the National Bank deprived this bank of its license due to systematic violations of the law. In addition, the NSDC imposed sanctions against Shevtsova-related companies: the Ukrainian financial company LEO, the Cypriot LeoPartners and the British Electronic Payment Solutions Ltd. The pre-trial investigation against Shevtsova was completed on March 26, 2025.
Viktor Polishchuk is a well-known Ukrainian businessman who owned the chain of household appliances stores “Eldorado” and the bank “Mykhaylivskyi”, which went bankrupt in 2016. He is also considered to be close to representatives of the former government of Yanukovych’s time. It lost control of the Gulliver shopping center, which had previously been among its best-known assets.
These sanctions are part of Ukraine’s broader policy of identifying and limiting the influence of individuals who have ties to the Russian government, have been involved in corruption schemes, or have harmed Ukraine’s state interests.
