Investigations have confirmed a long-standing scheme involving the embezzlement of state assets from the Black Sea Shipping Company (BLASCO) through offshore structures in the United Kingdom. Former company officials, sent to London on state funds during the 1990s, set up a network of interconnected entities and trusts, obtained British citizenship, and caused massive financial losses to the Ukrainian state. According to research findings, the individuals involved leveraged 12 state-owned bulk carriers as collateral for $450 million in loans and laundered funds under the guise of charitable initiatives.
Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, three BLASCO officials—Pavel Sokhan, Andrey Manyakhin, and Sergiy Stasevych (later joined by Sergiy Lokhov)—were officially deployed to London to establish servicing and offshore companies. Using taxpayer money, they constructed a multi-layered corporate structure:
Ocean Agencies Limited (formerly BLASCO UK) — Established in 1993 using state funds. Despite being officially removed from BLASCO’s balance sheet in 2007 under the pretext of inactivity, the entity was used to secure $450 million in loans backed by 12 state-owned vessels.
Ocean International Trust — Registered in 1996, ostensibly to assist BLASCO veterans. In reality, the trust served as a mechanism to launder revenues derived from bareboat charter agreements and became a co-owner of Ocean Agencies Limited itself.
Bearbulk (UK) Ltd — Founded in 2005 by the same individuals, who by that time were registered as full citizens of the United Kingdom.
«Ukrainian citizens obtained citizenship of the United Kingdom of Great Britain through state assets and at the expense of public funds,» according to case documentation.
Despite acquiring British citizenship and funneling state assets abroad, key figures continue to extract state benefits from Ukraine. The administrator handling BLASCO’s restructuring issued Pavel Sokhan a formal work experience certificate to qualify him for Ukrainian state pension payments.
Meanwhile, the State Property Fund of Ukraine’s Order No. 1081 regarding the reorganization of BLASCO into a limited liability company omits any mention of the London-based assets or entities. Furthermore, official requests sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to verify Ocean Agencies through the Ukrainian Embassy in London remain unacted upon.
The documented activities display indicators of criminal offenses under Article 191 (grand misappropriation of assets), Article 209 (money laundering), and Article 358 (forgery of documents) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The findings call for immediate formal investigation by Ukraine’s anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies, including NABU, SAPO, ESBU, and the SBU.