Ukraine's National Bank views MP Hetmantsev's accusations as politically motivated pressure – statement
The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) denies and rejects any accusations made by Chairman of the parliamentary committee on finance, tax and customs policy Danylo Hetmantsev regarding the insufficiency or absence of supervisory actions by the regulator, calling them groundless and manipulative.
"We view these unfounded direct public accusations as bias and politically motivated pressure on the National Bank," the NBU board said in its official position regarding Hetmantsev's statements.
The National Bank emphasized that its activities are based on "supervisory practices and procedures defined by regulatory legal acts, clearly regulated work of divisions, and a legally established system of collegial bodies acting within delegated powers," in order to prevent unilateral and unfounded decisions, as well as attempts to exert pressure and politicize the NBU's activities.
The NBU also pointed out that Hetmantsev had previously acknowledged the regulator's efforts in combating and preventing money laundering and economic crimes, and described his transition to daily accusations following the "Mindichgate" affair as opportunistic and unprofessional.
The National Bank added that it had responded to all 119 parliamentary inquiries submitted by Hetmantsev during the full-scale war.
"If Mr. Hetmantsev possesses information regarding specific facts of violations by Sense Bank of legislation on financial monitoring, we propose that such information be submitted to the National Bank for verification within its competence, as well as to other competent authorities, including law enforcement agencies," the statement said.
The NBU also noted that its mandate does not include monitoring the completeness of tax payments by bank clients or confirming the legalization of criminal proceeds.
"We call on Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy Mr. Hetmantsev to refrain from unfounded high-profile accusations that not only contradict the principles of ethics for members of parliament established by law, but also negatively affect interagency cooperation at a time when Ukrainian society and international partners expect the most productive cooperation from us," the board concluded.
Following the emergence of questions related to the operations of state-owned Sense Bank and the appointment of its supervisory board as part of the "Mindichgate" affair, Hetmantsev repeatedly sharply criticized the NBU and its governor Andriy Pyshnyy personally.
"It is wrong to perceive an institution's political independence as immunity for its leadership from crimes, including those aimed at laundering proceeds obtained through criminal means and tax evasion. It seems to me that these axioms are obvious and understandable to everyone, including the NBU governor, who understood the risks of unlawful activities and their inevitable consequences," one of the committee chairman's latest statements said.
