Vadim Ermolayev: The Russian Federation destroyed my plane with a missile strike and stole equipment worth 23 million euros.

How the main developer of Dnipro, Vadim Ermolayev, lives and what he does — in an exclusive interview for RBC-Ukraine.

A year ago, at the end of December 2023, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine imposed sanctions against one of the wealthiest businessmen in the country, Vadim Ermolayev.

In 2021, Ermolayev was included in the Forbes list. He owns the Alef group of companies, which has implemented projects in Dnipro such as "Most-City," Cascade Plaza, "Bosporus," Enigma, "Prisma," and others.

In addition to real estate, Alef is involved in the production of autoclaved aerated concrete, PVC profiles, seamless pipes, dental implants, and the cultivation of elite apple varieties. The group owns Ukraine's largest biomass power plant with a capacity of 16 MW.

The corporation comprises 18 companies and 11 production facilities, with products exported to 50 countries.

The sanctions, introduced at the initiative of the SBU, are set for 10 years. The official reason for the sanctions has not been disclosed. Unofficially, it is related to business in Crimea. In particular, the company "Alef-Vinal-Crimea" allegedly fulfilled state orders worth 70 million rubles and paid 490 million rubles in taxes in 2021.

RBC-Ukraine reached out to Ermolayev a year ago for comments on the accusations. The businessman agreed to answer questions only now. We publish a shortened version of the conversation.

— Let's start with whether the sanctions have affected you?

— Of course, it complicates life both personally and in business. This is obvious.

— What do the sanctions mean for you as an individual?

— Speaking of personal life, first of all, many Ukrainian institutions refuse to cooperate with me — both as a legal entity and as an individual.

— Are you referring to state banks?

— Yes, both state and commercial banks. Financial institutions have frozen funds in personal accounts and are not extending credit lines.

— Can you specify the amount of frozen personal funds in your accounts?

— Honestly, I don’t know, but it’s a significant amount.

— What other difficulties are you facing due to the sanctions?

— Some business partners have ceased cooperation with us. Additionally, some clients have refused to pay off their debts.

— For example?

— For example, companies like ATB and Silpo. They refused to pay for goods provided, took the goods, and did not settle, citing the sanctions. They are monopolists in the market now and believe they can afford such actions. They literally mock all suppliers. This has become a classic case.

— Who else?

— There are other cases as well. For instance, in another business partially related to me, clients have refused to repay loans they took five years ago. They even wrote to the Ministry of Justice, claiming that based on the sanctions, they consider the court's decision to recover debts as illegal.

— What connection is there? They owe money to the enterprise.

— The point is that the court case lasted several years. Ultimately, the court ruled in their favor because sanctions were imposed against me. The enterprise, through some indirect ownership, is partially connected to me. This became their reason for not fulfilling their obligations. Many have taken advantage of this situation.

— Where do you live, if it’s not a secret?

— I move between Cyprus, London, and Paris.

— Besides the issues mentioned above, you are accused of having a business in occupied Crimea. Tell us what you had there before the occupation and what the situation is with that property now?

— I do not own or manage any business in Crimea. It is legally and conceptually impossible.

— Let's clarify. You are accused of direct collaboration with the aggressor or of having assets in the Russian Federation. Are these accusations grounded?

— This is some kind of surrealism. We have never contacted the Russian side; I have never had assets in the aggressor country.

Even before the annexation, I was an investor in a specific business, but I did not gain any profits from it.

— A small clarification: what specific investments are we talking about?

— We are talking about three enterprises that were engaged in grape cultivation, winemaking, and brandy production. All these assets were nationalized by the occupiers under the same decree that seized the property of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky. These assets no longer exist for us. In other words, after the annexation of Crimea, Russia took part of the assets I had previously invested in.

We tried to withdraw the invested resources, but in vain, and by the end of 2015, our attempts ceased. The management of these enterprises informed us that they were being intimidated and forced to re-register under the laws of the aggressor country.

— What did you tell them? How did you part ways?

— We warned them that they should not do this, as it would entail criminal liability. But we do not know what kind of pressure was exerted on them from the other side. Ultimately, they made the decision themselves and stopped communicating with us.

We lost everything.

— Let's return to the consequences of the sanctions. How has this affected your activities, including potential losses in taxes, unreceived loans, and other factors?

— Everything has dropped by half. I have a lot of real estate in Dnipro, and everything that was rented out has seen prices halved; a huge amount of office space is sitting empty — there’s no one to rent the premises, offices are shrinking, and businesses are saving money, primarily by cutting back on rental costs. Office real estate is 70% vacant. In other areas, we are trying to hold on and preserve jobs, using our reserves, trying to survive, and trying not to close down to maintain jobs and the team that has been built over the years. People need work, and the city needs taxes. I understand all this, and I consider this work a contribution to the common good.

— Deputy Minister of Justice Irina Mudraya does not rule out the nationalization of your assets under the "On Sanctions" law. How likely do you think this is?

— I hope that common sense will prevail, and this will not happen.

— What will your actions be in that case?

— I will increase the budget for lawyers.

— If you really have no ties to Russia, are you ready to provide evidence?

— Absolutely. I provided evidence to the SBU, and they are currently reviewing it. My position regarding the war and the Russians is categorical and unambiguous, and I fear you will have to "bleep" part of my response so that my evaluative language regarding our enemies’ actions appears acceptable for your publication. I condemn the invasion, I despise our enemies, and I believe they will be held accountable for the grief they have brought to Ukrainian soil and to my hometown, to which I have dedicated my entire life.

By nature and definition, I cannot have any connections with the occupiers. There is only a colossal negativity towards the calamity that Russia has brought to Ukraine, my family, my loved ones, and all the people living in Ukraine.

— What losses has your business suffered since the start of the full-scale war?

— In the temporarily occupied territories, in the first days, Chechen militants took away agricultural machinery worth 15 million euros from the warehouses. Additionally, 175 freight cars were taken — another irretrievable loss of 8 million euros. This occurred in Melitopol and Kherson, where there were large stocks of new equipment, spare parts, and other materials. In April 2022, a Russian missile strike destroyed a hangar with my private plane at Dnipro airport. Do you think I can have a favorable view towards them?

— Can you state the amount of taxes paid by your companies?

— During the full-scale war, my companies have contributed nearly 8 billion hryvnias to the budget.

— How do you help the front?

— I generally do not consider it appropriate to talk about charity; the fates and lives of people are not a ground for advertising. In Dnipro, the extent of our involvement and participation in the city and front's