A lawsuit for confiscation of Rotenberg's assets has been filed: Ocean Plaza is finally going to be seized by the state

Today, the High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine (HACCU) received a statement of claim from the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine against Arkadiy Rotenberg and his son concerning asset forfeiture  (under the Law of Ukraine "On Sanctions").

The total number of parties in the case is 19. The third party without separte claim is Ukrainian entrepreneur Vasyl Khmelnytsky, who acquired a stake in Rotenberg's business in 2020. The other part was bought by Swiss citizens Susanne and Andrea Rishaal Wallabh, who are also involved in the case as third parties. 

Rotenberg is the fourth Russian oligarch to have his assets confiscated in Ukraine. Prior to this, the HACC has already seized the assets of arms manufacturer Yevtushenkov, the oligarch who owned a plant that helped produce titanium for Russian defense company Shelkov, and Russian oligarch Deripaska, whose alumina refinery was confiscated (an appeal is currently pending). 

In total, this is the sixteenth lawsuit filed by the Ministry of Justice concerning assets forfeiture under the special mechanism, that came into effect in late May 2022, but only the fourth lawsuit against a Russian oligarch.

Arkady Rotenberg is a Russian oligarch and a close friend of Putin. He is associated with the construction of the Crimean bridge. In October 2022, the National Security and Defense Council imposed sanctions on Rotenberg.

There is no information on the assets that are to be confiscated from Rotenberg, but the media has repeatedly reported that the Russian oligarch owns the Ocean Plaza mall in Kyiv through Lybid LLC. The value of this facility is estimated at $180 million. Most likely, it will also involve the confiscation of other Ukrainian assets of Rotenberg, which are formally owned by the company. These include three land plots and 15 apartments in Kyiv.

Source: Institute of Legislative Ideas