From Ukrenergo guarantees to BEB searches: how Pavel Shcherban and his Alliance Bank launched a total cleanup of the web to hide schemes for siphoning billions to the RF

From Ukrenergo guarantees to BEB searches: how Pavel Shcherban and his Alliance Bank launched a total cleanup of the web to hide schemes for siphoning billions to the RF

Those keeping an eye on the scandals involving Alliance Bank have observed that a widespread operation to eliminate negative content about both the bank and its owner, Pavlo Shcherban, is now underway.

There is plenty to clean – the Internet contains a huge array of materials in which the bank itself and its management appear in high-profile criminal cases and investigations – from stories of billion-hryvnia debts to the state to suspicions of financial schemes and fund withdrawals.

The cleanup campaign is being conducted according to all the rules of information warfare – court lawsuits, threats, and complaints about alleged copyright violations. The latter is the most effective and fastest tactic, allowing unwanted material to be quickly removed from search results.

The essence of the method is simple – a fake «original source» is created, onto which the unwanted material is copied. This «original source» is dated earlier than the publication to be cleaned up. Then, a complaint about «copyright» infringement is filed through the Lumen Database system, supported by the corresponding link.

The fact that Pavel Shcherban files his complaints from a porn resource would be funny if these complaints did not yield the desired result – «illegally copied» materials are removed, after which the «original» disappears as well. Finding the publication after such a cleanup is possible, but it is a rather complicated procedure. The main goal is achieved – the negative content vanishes from search engine results.

At the same time, a number of Ukrainian websites reported pressure on editorial offices. Although there are no direct confirmations of this, exposé publications about Pavel Shcherban and the «Alliance» bank have disappeared from some sites.

Be that as it may, there is a targeted campaign underway that includes all the classic elements of information warfare: challenging publications, legal claims against editorial offices, mass complaints about content, and attempts to «reformat» search results. The goal of the campaign is obvious: to cleanse the internet of materials about corruption scandals surrounding the bank.

A logical question arises – what is Pavel Shcherban trying to clean up? The answer here is quite simple, although explaining the reason in two words would be difficult. In short, the main reason is a series of high-profile stories involving the «Alliance» bank, its beneficiaries, and management, among whom Pavel Shcherban plays a prominent role.

Scandal with «Ukrenergo» and debt over a billion

The most well-known story is the case surrounding electricity supplies by United Energy, a company linked to oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky.

At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, United Energy purchased electricity from the state operator «Ukrenergo», but never settled the payment. The deal was secured by a bank guarantee from the «Alliance» bank, so after the trader’s non-payment, the state company demanded repayment of the debt from the guarantor bank.

However, «Alliance» refused to fulfill its guarantee obligations, leading to multi-year court disputes. The debt of 1.2 billion hryvnias remains unpaid.

Attempt to bribe NABU detectives

Parallel to this, NABU is investigating a criminal case of embezzlement, in which the former chairwoman of the bank’s board, Yuliya Frolova, who has been declared wanted internationally, is a figure. Additional resonance to the case was added by an attempt by lawyer Aleksey Nosov to bribe NABU detectives and SAPO prosecutors with $200,000 to change Frolova’s jurisdiction.

At the same time, Ukrenergo’s claims in the civil proceedings amount to about 1.2 billion hryvnias, which is a significant portion of the bank’s capital and, in case of loss, could seriously impact the financial stability of «Alliance» and provoke new demands from other creditors.

«Alliance» bank and «Mindichgate»

The «Alliance» bank is also being considered as one of the possible financial instruments through which funds were channeled from state energy projects as part of the scandal known as «Mindichgate».

This concerns funds from Western partners allocated for the restoration and protection of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Since such funds enter the country in non-cash form, the key issue is the mechanism for their subsequent conversion to cash and withdrawal. According to independent sources and press publications, operations to convert these funds into cash and their further distribution may have been conducted through the «Alliance» bank.

Publications also claim that actual control over the bank belonged to the chairman of the supervisory board, Pavel Shcherban, while the formal owner Aleksandr Sosis is described as a nominal figure. Shcherban is linked to the former deputy head of the President’s Office, Rostyslav Shurma, who in a number of investigations is called the bank’s political patron.

It is noted that thanks to this influence, «Alliance» avoided harsh sanctions from the NBU despite detected violations, while other banks in similar situations lost their licenses.

Schemes for withdrawing money to the RF

After a series of scandals, Pavel Shcherban began gradually redirecting capital from the «Alliance» bank to new structures formally unrelated to the banking sector. Funds were withdrawn from the troubled bank and invested in new companies and funds to reduce personal risks amid debts and criminal investigations surrounding the financial institution.

In particular, at the end of 2023, companies «Navium Nafta» and «Tabakos Trade» were established, each with a stated statutory capital of one billion hryvnias. These structures are engaged in fuel logistics, trade, and transportation operations – sectors not directly related to banking activities. Thus, billions of hryvnias can be transferred from the banking sector to new business projects, some of which, by indirect signs, have ties to Russian structures.

Additionally, a closed investment fund «ALB» was created with capital of about 700 million hryvnias, through which funds were directed to IT companies and payment services, effectively spun off from the «Alliance» bank’s infrastructure. This network of new companies and funds served as a mechanism for redistributing and withdrawing financial flows from the bank ahead of possible sanctions from the regulator or issues with its stability.

Withdrawal of money to Russia and financing of terrorists

Pavel Shcherban and the «Alliance» bank were also accused of setting up a scheme for the regular withdrawal of money to the Russian Federation.

A petition was even registered on the president’s website describing these schemes. As the petition authors claimed, significant financial flows could be withdrawn to Russia through structures linked to the «Alliance» bank. In particular, the authors point to the bank’s involvement in a scheme for laundering and transferring about 6.5 billion hryvnias to the RF in 2019–2020, as well as operations used to finance structures in occupied territories.

Additionally, the petition mentions the legalization of funds obtained in energy schemes, including those related to electricity supplies from «Ukrenergo». According to the initiators of the appeal, such operations were conducted through bank guarantees and financial transactions, after which the money was withdrawn for the benefit of beneficiaries linked to Russian interests.

The above is only part of the public accusations against the «Alliance» bank and its actual beneficiary Pavel Shcherban. In addition to the «Ukrenergo» case, the «Alliance» bank and its owner Pavel Shcherban were involved in other scandals, primarily related to bank guarantees. Media and market participants noted that in a number of cases, after guarantee obligations arose to state structures or counterparties, the bank challenged payments and delayed settlements through courts, causing conflicts with creditors and increasing the institution’s reputational risks.

Some journalistic investigations also raised questions about the redistribution of financial flows and the possible withdrawal of funds to related business projects – including oil trading, the agricultural sector, and other commercial structures. Moreover, public campaigns and petitions demanding checks on the bank’s activities emerged around the bank, heightening media and law enforcement attention to «Alliance».

State reaction and criminal cases

Despite attempts to clean up information, law enforcement agencies continue to handle cases related to the bank. In 2026, the Bureau of Economic Security received permission to conduct searches at the premises of the «Alliance» bank. The investigation is checking possible tax evasion, legalization of property, and other financial violations.

According to media reports, the investigations are also examining the bank’s role in servicing certain risky operations and businesses, including structures related to gambling. Additionally, court disputes continue around the bank regarding financial obligations and bank guarantees.

What all this will lead to is hard to predict. On one hand, there is a persistent impression that law enforcement agencies either ignore accusations against Pavel Shcherban or do everything to prevent these accusations from reaching the final stage – i.e., court proceedings. On the other hand, it should not be forgotten that after upheavals in the President’s Office, Pavel Shcherban found himself without the powerful support he had received at the level of deputy heads of the OP.

Perhaps the current massive cleanup of compromising materials is triggered by the fact that the «roof» at the highest level, which ensured Pavel Shcherban’s de facto impunity for many years, has finally «leaked». For now, as already noted, it is too early to make predictions. But the fact remains – Pavel Shcherban has switched to «turbo mode» in attempts to whitewash his biography.