Getin Holding sells Ukrainian Idea Bank to Ukrainian businessman Tigipko for $36.7 mln
Polish company Getin Holding SA has, on its third attempt, sold 100% of the shares of Idea Bank (Lviv) – 27th in terms of assets in Ukraine. The buyer was Cyprus-based Alkemi Limited, owned by the TAS Group of Sergiy Tigipko, in accordance with a conditional sale and purchase agreement signed on October 18 of last year, according to a stock exchange statement by the seller.
"Under the agreement, the issuer received a price for the shares equivalent to $36.5 million. Additionally, the issuer received a fee equivalent to EUR 194,339 under an exclusive agreement signed with the buyer on April 22, 2025," Getin stated.
It added that a further payment was received for the transfer of rights to funds accumulated in an Idea Bank deposit, totaling UAH 30.24 million in euros – EUR 633,790 – based on a mandate agreement signed by the seller, the buyer, and the bank on April 23, 2025.
As reported, the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) approved Tigipko's indirect acquisition of 100% of Idea Bank shares on April 21.
Back in February 2022, Getin noted that it had failed a second time to sell Idea Bank. An agreement signed on November 10, 2021, with the First Ukrainian International Bank (FUIB, Kyiv), owned by Rinat Akhmetov, was terminated due to failure to fulfill all ownership transfer conditions by the February 25 deadline. After the deal with FUIB fell through, Getin declined to pursue the sale of its Ukrainian subsidiary under wartime conditions.
That deal had stipulated a sale price equivalent in euros to the bank's total net assets, according to audited 2021 financial results, multiplied by a coefficient of 1.072 plus net profit for the period from January 1, 2022, until the sale, but not exceeding UAH 45 million (PLN 6.86 million). Analysts had estimated the deal at approximately $50 million.
Even earlier – at the end of 2019 – Getin had signed an agreement to sell Idea Bank and LLC New Finance Service (NFS, Kyiv) to Dragon Capital, owned by Tomas Fiala, together with Ivan Svitek. The purchase price for Idea Bank in euros was equivalent to UAH 1.368 billion (around $57.8 million at the exchange rate at the beginning of 2020), minus the amount of dividends paid before closing, and around UAH 5 million for 100% of NFS. Although the deal was approved by the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine, it was terminated as the parties failed to agree on commercial terms within the contractual deadline.
On March 27, 2023, the NBU deemed both the Polish holding and its primary owner, Leszek Czarnecki, to have an unsatisfactory business reputation. As a result, the Ukrainian regulator temporarily stripped Getin of voting rights for 100% of Idea Bank shares and gave both the holding and Czarnecki one year to rectify the violation. A year later, the NBU refused to restore the voting rights. Additionally, the NBU approved Jacek Piechota, President of the Polish-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce, as trustee manager for Idea Bank.
At the end of April 2024, the regulator gave Getin six months to sell its entire stake in Idea Bank. The same demand was made of Czarnecki, who was required to sell Getin's 44.98% stake in Idea Bank or alternatively divest his stake in Getin or in LC Corp BV, which owns 34.17% of Getin.
Subsequently, in October 2024, Getin's management and Tigipko's TAS Group signed a purchase agreement for Idea Bank. The base amount of the transaction was $34 million. That same month, Getin received the NBU's decision extending the sale deadline to the end of January 2025.
The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine approved the deal on December 12, 2024, and the NBU reported at the end of January 2025 that it had received Tigipko's documents for acquisition approval.
