KYIV. Oct 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) - Creditwest Bank (Kyiv) unreasonably blocks the property that is pledged by it on the repaid loan, the owner of the group of companies Voda UA, Karpatska Dzherelna Vysokohirna, Horianka, Dmytro Nikiforov, has said.

"After all obligations under the loan agreement have been fulfilled, the bank continues to hold the property in pledge, conducts incomprehensible correspondence and constantly asks us to provide certain documents regarding financial reporting, our turnover in other banks," he said at a press conference at the Interfax-Ukraine agency.

"They made it very clear to us ... that they are not going to release pledge from our property," Nikiforov added.

According to him, the obligations of his companies on the loan to Creditwest Bank were fulfilled on October 1 and, according to the loan agreement, the bank had to remove the encumbrance from the pledge within five days.

Nikiforov clarified that in 2018 the companies attracted a loan from Creditwest Bank in the amount of UAH 15 million to replenish working capital and finance investment projects. Later, according to the owner, he sold one of the companies that was the borrower for this loan, and after a while this company stopped serving him.

For the purpose of settlements, Nikiforov began to negotiate with the bank, at the same time the bank sold the corresponding non-performing loan to a financial company owned by the persons who own the company that stopped servicing the loan, the owner of Voda UA noted.

"Later, the financial company, bypassing the lender, tried to contact me to recover my property as a surety to repay this loan ... In this case, we see a very clear algorithm for removing the unscrupulous borrower from liability," Nikiforov said.

In his opinion, Creditwest Bank can block the pledge in the interests of the partner of its chairman of the board.

"When the story with the loan transfer took place, chairman of the board Ihor Tikhonov … suggested that I transfer part of the business to my business partner. On what conditions I didn't listen, as I interrupted the conversation," Nikiforov said.

He stressed that he plans to collect funds from the bank in accordance with the procedure established by law for each day of delay in the unreleased encumbrance from the pledge. In addition, Nikiforov is going to apply to law enforcement agencies regarding possible personal corruption motives of the bank's management.

The Interfax-Ukraine agency asked Creditwest Bank for comments, while the bank informed that it will provide them in the very near future.