Ukrainian officials go crypto: who declared the most
2 April 13:20
In 2024, Ukrainian officials filed more than 2,100 declarations with cryptocurrency, which is 10% more than in the previous year and 2.2 times more than before the full-scale invasion. This was reported by the analytical service Opendatabot, Komersant ukrainskyi reports.
Representatives of law enforcement agencies are the most active in declaring digital assets. The National Police of Ukraine is in the lead with 322 declarations, which is 15% of all cryptocurrency declarants. The second place is occupied by the Prosecutor’s Office (240 declarations), and the third – by judges (227). In city councils, 119 officials declared crypto assets, among the Armed Forces – 77, and in the NABU – 38.
In terms of geographic distribution, Kyiv (582) and Kyiv region (185) are dominant. This is followed by Kharkiv (172), Dnipro (167), and Lviv (133) regions.
The most popular cryptocurrencies among officials are Tether (USDT) – 802 civil servants, Bitcoin (BTC, XBT) – 731, and Ethereum (ETH) – 713 declarations.
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Who declared the most crypto
The most bitcoins (80 BTC, equivalent to UAH 279.4 million as of April 1) were declared by Oleh Bondarenko, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Environmental Policy.
MP Serhiy Maisel became the record holder in terms of the amount of ethereum with 200 tokens (UAH 15.5 million).
The record for crypto dollars was set by Vitaliy Brovko, head of a department at the Prosecutor General’s Office, with 847,908 USDT (35 million hryvnias).
Some former officials could have topped the ranking, but they reported losing access to their crypto assets. In particular, Roman Saramaga, the former Deputy Head of the State Service of Geology and Subsoil of Ukraine, declared but lost 380.95 bitcoins in 2021 (approximately UAH 1.33 billion at the exchange rate as of April 1, 2025).
Ihor Osipov, a deputy of the Podil District Council of Odesa Oblast, has a similar situation, having lost access to 1,800 ethereum units (over UAH 140 million).
What is cryptocurrency?
Cryptocurrencies are digital or virtual currencies that use cryptography to secure and verify transactions and to control the creation of new currency units. Unlike traditional fiat money, cryptocurrencies operate on the basis of blockchain technology, a distributed ledger that ensures transparency, security, and decentralization. Bitcoin, created in 2009 by a person or group of persons under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, became the first and most famous cryptocurrency, after which thousands of alternative cryptocurrencies (altcoins) with different functions and purposes appeared.
The main characteristics of cryptocurrencies are
- decentralization, which allows them to function without a central control body;
- pseudo-anonymity, which ensures a certain level of user privacy;
- limited issue of many cryptocurrencies, which creates a shortage and potentially affects their value;
- global availability, which allows transactions between any network participants regardless of their geographical location.
Cryptocurrencies are used for a variety of purposes, including investment, international transfers, payment for goods and services, and as a tool for accessing decentralized applications and services.
The cryptocurrency market is characterized by high volatility, which makes it attractive for speculative investments, but at the same time risky for long-term investments. Regulation of cryptocurrencies differs from country to country, ranging from a complete ban to official recognition and integration into national financial systems. The development of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies continues, with new projects emerging that focus on improving scalability, energy efficiency, privacy, and integration with traditional financial systems, potentially leading to wider acceptance of cryptocurrencies in the future as an alternative or complement to traditional financial instruments.
Most popular and expensive cryptocurrencies are considered to be well protected in terms of privacy of their owners, so they are very popular among Ukrainian corrupt officials.
