Meet the bankers

Petro Poroshenko. Head of National Bank’s Supervisory Board, appointed by Parliament in 2007. A leading Ukrainian businessman, Poroshenko controls much of Ukraine’s confectionary and auto assembly business. He was once close to Victor Yushchenko, but has recently allied himself closer with Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, once a bitter foe.

Ihor Prasolov. Prasolov is the former top executive of System Capital Management (2000-2005), the holding company of Ukraine’s richest billionaire, Rinat Akhmetov. He is a close ally of Akhmetov and a lawmaker within the Party of Regions faction which backs ex-prime minister Victor Yanukovych.
Volodymyr Stelmakh. Stelmakh is a long-time top official at the central bank and close ally of President Victor Yushchenko. He served as deputy chairman of the national bank when Yushchenko headed the institution from 1993-1999.

Boris Kolesnikov. Kolesnikov is a businessman, lawmaker and leader of the Party of Regions which backs the presidential candidacy of Victor Yanukovych. But he is best known as Akhmetov’s right-hand man.

Serhiy Kluyev. Serhiy Kluyev and his brother, Andriy, are also businessmen, Regions lawmakers and party leaders. The Kluyev brothers are known to be some of the biggest businessmen from the eastern Donbass region, and have been backers of Yanukovych, but political analysts say they have also grown friendly with Tymoshenko and are supporters of a grand coalition between her camp and the Regions grouping.

Mykola Onishchuk. As justice minister, Onishchuk is guaranteed a seat on the supervisory council. He is a staunch ally of President Victor Yushchenko and member of his Our Ukraine political grouping.
Volodymyr Horbal. Horbal, a lawmaker within the Party of Regions, continues to serve as an advisor on the central bank’s council despite his inability to keep his own bank afloat during the crisis. This summer, he relinquished control over Ukrgazbank, once one of the country’s top 20 banks in terms of net assets. The state took a majority stake in return for a bailout. Horbal remains honorary president of Ukrgazbank and retains a 14 percent stake. While officially a Yanukovych backer, political analysts say Horbal is also on relatively good terms with Tymoshenko.

Yuriy Poluneev. A lawmaker within Tymoshenko’s bloc, Poluneev serves as one of the prime minister’s top economic advisors. The Soviet-born Poluneev is a former professor at Cornell University in the US, and a former executive director at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development responsible for Ukraine, Romania, Moldova and Georgia.

Arseniy Yatseniuk. Considered one of three frontrunners in the January 2010 presidential elections, Yatseniuk remains on the supervisory council, holding a seat set aside by quota to parliament’s speaker, despite being ousted from this job more than one year ago. Nevertheless, he has much more banking experience than Volodymyr Lytvyn, current parliament speaker. Yatseniuk served as acting head of the central bank from 2003 through 2005.

Volodymyr Polyachenko. A lawmaker and real estate property tycoon, Polyachenko has long headed the capital’s largest construction company, Kyivmiskbud. He and relatives control the company and they are allied with Yushchenko, political analysts said.
Valeriy Heyets. He stands out on the board for several reasons. First, he is not a businessman or lawmaker. Rather, he is a career economic and policy expert. He has served as an advisor to both Yushchenko and Tymoshenko. Some political analysts say he is nowadays leaning closer to Tymoshenko, who has a better chance of becoming Ukraine’s next president.

Mykhaylo Honcharov. Honcharov is head of the supervisory board of Kyiv-based Eastern European Bank. He served as a lawmaker in 2006-2007, representing Ukraine’s Socialist party.
Anatoliy Danylenko. Political analysts consider Danylenko, a career economy and policy expert, as close to Yushchenko, but they don’t see him having any obvious connections to political parties or businesses.
Petro Sabluk. Sabluk, also an economic expert, is considered to be close to Yushchenko, who appointed him to the supervisory council.

Anatoliy Fedorenko. Also appointed by Yushchenko, Fedorenko has served as vice president of the Kyiv-based Kinto investment company since 1992.

Executive Board of the National Bank of Ukraine Headed by Volodymyr Stelmakh
Anatoliy Shapovalov. First deputy chairman of the board since 2005, Shapovalov is an ally of President Yushchenko and Stelmakh. He is a professional banker who started his career in 1974 in a Soviet bank. He had served as first deputy chairman of the board in 2000-2002, when Stelmakh headed the NBU for the first time.

Oleksandr Savcheko. Former deputy chairman, he quit on Sept. 11, accusing other members of the board and the supervisory council of profiteering through dubious schemes. He was quick to take the job of deputy finance minister in Yulia Tymsohenko’s government just four days after his resignation, confirming suspicions that he is a close ally of the prime minister. A professional banker, he had worked for Austria Creditanstalt Ukraine and International Commercial Bank.

Volodymyr Krotyuk. Deputy chairman of the board since 2000. He worked at the General Prosecutor’s office in 1984-1994, and was appointed head of the NBU’s law department in 1996.
Pavlo Senyshch. The youngest deputy chairman of the board, serving since 2000, he climbed the career ladder in the National Bank, starting as head of the accounting department in 1996. He worked as chief accountant for a company in Ternopil Oblast prior to the NBU.