Nikolay Lagun, the ex-owner of Delta Bank who drove the financial institution to bankruptcy in 2014, inflicting damages estimated at up to UAH 50 billion on the state, should face an appropriate level of accountability, similar to that imposed on PrivatBank owner Igor Kolomoisky, given the many parallels in their stories. This point is made in a publication by “Korotko.Pro”.
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The outlet notes that both bankers likely employed comparable schemes to transfer assets to offshore jurisdictions through loans to affiliated companies. “This was particularly true for diverting state refinancing, often issued under the personal guarantees of both owners. Significant funds were diverted via Austrian and European banks. For instance, the notorious Austrian Meinl Bank was used to move no less than $87 million out of Delta, while multiple banks in Liechtenstein and Luxembourg facilitated the removal of $437 million of Delta’s foreign currency assets. The Deposit Guarantee Fund discovered a staggering 182 fraudulent transactions exceeding UAH 22 billion, concluded within a year prior to the appointment of the temporary administration,” states the material.
When declared an internationally wanted person in autumn 2023, Lagun had already been residing in Austria for over a year, purportedly for medical treatment, participating in court proceedings remotely from there. In contrast, Kolomoisky has been in a pre-trial detention center since October 2023, facing charges including embezzlement from PrivatBank – underscoring the different current fates of the two owners.
At the end of July 2025, it was revealed that after eight years of legal battle with the state, represented by the nationalized PrivatBank, Kolomoisky lost his case at the High Court in London: the court determined that alongside partner Hennadiy Boholyubov, they embezzled over $1.9 billion from the bank via “a byzantine scheme of fraud.” Court records indicate that Kolomoisky and Boholyubov themselves declared assets exceeding $8 billion during mandatory disclosure procedures. Repayment of debts to the state is now expected to proceed from these funds. Mykola Lagun, as uncovered by media, also faced defeat in London arbitration. However, it wasn’t against the state, which seeks claims of UAH 50 billion from him (the combined demands of Oschadbank, Ukreximbank, the National Bank, and the Deposit Guarantee Fund for deposits paid to defrauded customers), but against private creditors. The Fozzy Group will now attempt to collect over $117 million from Lagun, borrowed under his personal guarantee back in 2012-13 and never repaid.
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“Unlike Kolomoisky and Boholyubov, Lagun has not disclosed his assets, either to the court in London or to Ukrainian courts. Furthermore, in 2022, he initiated personal bankruptcy proceedings as a physical person, acknowledging total claims of around UAH 7 billion; he requested the court to write off UAH 6 billion, promising to repay the remainder ‘a teaspoon at a time’ from his symbolic income in Vienna, which resembles social assistance. Media estimates suggest this repayment would take about a thousand years,” the article details.
Media have repeatedly indicated that Lagun possesses substantial assets in Ukraine that could be seized. These include hundreds of hectares of development land in the Kyiv region and the Carpathians, along with communal and tourism infrastructure facilities. Notably, the international investigative agency Kroll handled the search for both bankers’ foreign assets, yet the case concerning Delta and Lagun proved significantly less successful for unclear reasons.
A further parallel with Kolomoisky involves sanctions. Media reports indicate sanctions against the former PrivatBank owner cited a “threat to national security.” Commenting on this decision, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated: “everyone who undermined Ukraine’s national security and aided russia—must answer.” Lagun fits this description: he is outside Ukrainian jurisdiction, moved funds out of the country, and — as numerous investigations show — maintains close ties with russia, including possessing a russian passport since 2014.
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Unlike Lagun, Kolomoisky is currently in a pre-trial detention facility. His partner, Hennadiy Boholyubov, fled to Austria. Alongside the former Delta Bank owner, they are now prime candidates for “extraordinary extradition.” President Zelenskyy personally appealed to Austrian leadership to facilitate the extradition of Ukrainian oligarchs evading justice on Austrian territory. European media have frequently pointed out that due to loopholes in legislation, Austria has effectively become a “transit hub” for fraudsters from across the post-Soviet space, notably Ukraine. Effecting Lagun’s extradition might prove relatively straightforward, given his lack of political past, his disinterest in asylum, and the extensive documentation of financial damages.