Business news, entrepreneurship and startups in Kyiv region
A three-month extension — the second consecutive one this year. Behind it lies US sanctions against NIS, EU pressure to abandon Russian gas, and Moscow's silent leverage against Serbian nationalization.
The Strait of Hormuz crisis has forced the EU to seek alternative fuel sources — and so far it has found them. However, Goldman Sachs is already counting down to a critical inventory threshold.
# Ukreximbank puts up for auction loan claims against car market operator with collateral in Kyiv region, Zaporizhzhia and occupied Donetsk Ukreximbank has put up for Dutch auction a package of loan claims against a car market operator, with collateral including complexes in Kyiv region, Zaporizhzhia and occupied Donetsk. This is not merely a state bank balance sheet cleanup, but a test of who in Ukraine is willing to buy assets with legal risks of wartime.
Three-quarters of Ukrainian companies cannot fill vacancies — despite official unemployment figures near two million. The state is responding with a forecasting system and the digital platform "Horizon," but economists say that without 300-400 thousand labor migrants annually, this won't be solved.
May 2026: 38,242 job cuts in the tech sector alone, the largest figure since early 2023. Yet the same sector leads hiring plans — a paradox that better describes the AI transition than any CEO statement.
The Cabinet of Ministers is expanding the reimbursement program starting July 1: cardiac medications, cancer drugs from October, and most importantly—from July onward, no pharmacy will be able to refuse participation in the program.
A property complex in the center of the capital will go to auction after a court rejected the latest attempt to block debt collection from bankrupt "Finansy ta Kredyt."
Finland Provides Credit — Ukrnafta Builds Gas Piston Generation Facilities Directly on Oil and Gas Fields in Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv Regions. Under this scheme, gas that was previously simply burned off or vented is converted into electricity for regional power grids.
Control Process S.A. received €3.6 million advance from Lviv in 2021 — and failed to complete the plant construction. After the contract was terminated, the city recovered the remainder through a bank guarantee: €947 thousand. But the main claim is yet to come.
A kamikaze drone struck a road construction site and destroyed 10 vehicles. This is no random attack — over three years of full-scale war, road workers have become a separate category of civilian casualties.
# Russian drone strike destroys major ATB distribution center in Dnipro region Russians have destroyed a distribution center of ATB supermarket chain with a direct drone hit, putting out of service a 37,500 square-meter facility that served as a key logistics hub supplying goods to one-third of the Dnipro region's network on a daily basis. Losses are estimated in the hundreds of millions of hryvnias, according to preliminary assessments.
From May 31, the occupation administration in Crimea introduced a coupon system for gasoline — AI-95 only with coupons, AI-92 no more than 20 liters per day. The reason is not an unexpected shortage, but a systemic disruption of logistics due to strikes by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The State Property Fund published a schedule of seven major auctions for 29.4 billion hryvnias. The main lot — Ocean Plaza shopping center — is legally more complex than its starting price suggests.
# Premium on ESPO crude fell due to deliberately weak demand from Chinese refineries. Moscow sells at increasingly deeper discounts — and so far has no alternative.
# Translation: Bloomberg revealed internal family divisions: some are already convinced to sell, while others are stalling. Behind the scenes — a $3.6 billion market valuation, a multi-billion-dollar bill for Old Trafford reconstruction, and a 2027 clause weighing on everyone.
Affinity Partners obtained "strategic investor" status in Albania without public bidding — and now the anti-corruption prosecutor's office is examining how protected lands changed their legal status specifically for this project.
The Black Sea salt plant in Odesa region has reached full capacity and became the first enterprise in Ukraine to process imported salt on an industrial scale after the loss of Soledar.
Pershing Square is selling its remaining stake in Universal Music Group for approximately $1.5 billion after largest shareholder Bolloré blocked a €55.75 billion acquisition. Bill Ackman's five-year investment in the world's largest music company is concluding without control and possibly without profit.
Airbus successfully tested the first ultra-long-range airliner for the "Project Sunrise" initiative, but passengers traveling between Sydney and London will not see a direct connection before 2027 — coming after several delays.
The United States has lifted its own restrictions on Belarusian potash producer and is pressing Vilnius to resume transit through Klaipeda. Lithuania's transport minister responded with a single sentence: it's not worth spending time on this.
Two courts have confirmed: four residential buildings of the Briz cooperative in the Gorbachykha locality are standing illegally. However, actual demolition depends not on the court verdict, but on who and how will enforce it.
Ukrainian Railways, facing a shortage of 100-200 traction units and with over 96% of rolling stock worn out, is negotiating with Vilnius over the transfer of reserve rolling stock. The Lithuanian side is still assessing the request.
By June 15, Brussels may adopt a new package of restrictions - this time targeted, aimed at Chinese companies that supply Russia's military-industrial complex.
The actual owner of companies involved in completing the Tashlyk PSPP ended up in custody after investigators established that contracts worth over 305 million hryvnias were conducted through a controlled foreign company, with equipment prices inflated by 170 million hryvnias.
The House of Representatives voted 218-204 to bring the Ukraine Support Act to a final vote for the first time since Trump returned to power. The key was a procedure typically used by the minority: a discharge petition.
American short-seller Grizzly Research claims that 10% of Pirelli's net profit still comes from Russia — despite official assurances about "suspending investments" in 2022.
# European Regulators Target Google Again — This Time Over Digital Markets Act Violations. What's Behind the Accusations and Why It Matters Beyond the Corporation European regulators have renewed their scrutiny of Google, this time focusing on alleged violations of the Digital Markets Act. The charges underscore Brussels' increasingly aggressive stance on big tech monopolies and what officials say are anticompetitive practices. The accusations center on how Google leverages its dominance across multiple digital services — from search to advertising to mobile platforms — to disadvantage competitors. Regulators claim the company is using its market power in ways that stifle innovation and limit consumer choice. The case carries significance far beyond Google itself. It signals how the EU is attempting to enforce its landmark Digital Markets Act, legislation designed to curb the gatekeeping power of tech giants. A potential penalty could set precedent for how other large technology companies face similar scrutiny. For consumers and smaller tech firms, the outcome could reshape the digital landscape by creating more room for competition. For Google, fines and operational restrictions could fundamentally alter its business model in Europe, the world's most stringent regulatory market. The case also reflects a broader geopolitical divide, with the EU pursuing a regulatory approach that contrasts sharply with the lighter-touch oversight favored in the United States.
# Ukrainian News Translation The chief designer and majority owner of the manufacturer of the "Flamingo" missile confirmed at a session of the Verkhovna Rada's temporary special commission his interest in selling 30% of the company to the UAE's EDGE Group defense holding. At the same time, it emerged that the application submitted to the AMCU was returned without review back in January, and a resubmission has not been made.
State property tenants for years have been "improving" premises in order to buy them without competitors — at reduced prices. The government has adopted a resolution that transfers such sales to open Prozorro auctions.
# Strike on May 21 Disabled AVT-6 Unit That Rosneft Had Just Repaired Following April Attack A strike on May 21 disabled the AVT-6 unit at a Rosneft facility that had only recently been repaired following an April attack. Repairs are expected to take up to a month, with production capacity at zero.