Banker Lev Goldberg is known for being the founder of the now-bankrupt “Green Bank” and “Artem Bank.” Both institutions, during Yanukovych’s rule, were linked to former MP and businessman Yuriy Ivanyushchenko. The first bank was established back in 1992 and was called “Olympic Ukraine.” Since 2008, one of the founders of “Green Bank” became the Investment Construction Company “Artem,” which later became the developer of the Artem defence plant’s territory.
Lev Goldberg was able to profit under the wing of his senior partner Yuriy Ivanyushchenko. According to local media, in the spring of 2022, when the Armed Forces of Ukraine expelled the occupiers from the Kyiv region, the whole world was shocked by the extent of the devastation in the area. One of the cities heavily affected by the actions of the Russian invaders was Makariv.
The elite GolfStream golf club was built in 2013 and is located in the village of Havronshchyna in the Makariv district near Kyiv. Until recently, it was the main venue for Ukrainian and international golf tournaments under the auspices of the All-Ukrainian Golf Federation.
To date, the club has only been mentioned in the media for the illegal privatization of the land it occupies. In 2008, plots given to ‘ordinary Ukrainians’ for supposed farming were transferred to the companies ‘Karon Paron’ and ‘Landin.’ The owner of these companies is Lev Samuilovich Goldberg, along with his friend Arkady Abramovich Kozerovsky, who later also became one of the owners of ‘GolfStream.’ Goldberg’s partners are quite interesting. If you trace which companies belong to whom and their connections, it reveals a real conspiracy.
A local journalistic investigation revealed that not everyone in the Makariv district opposed the Russian world. The owner of 46 land plots in the village of Havronshchyna, where an elite golf club is located, banker Lev Goldberg, is closely connected with businessman Yuriy Ivanyushchenko, who is associated with the fugitive president Yanukovych, and does not shy away from cooperating with citizens of the aggressor country.
Lev Goldberg and His Role in Plundering Ukraine
“Artem Bank” was created in 2002. Among its founders were the State Joint-Stock Holding Company “Artem,” PJSC “Universal Plant-A,” PJSC “Aura,” and LLC “Paradigm.” Since 2003, Lev Goldberg and his business partners Arkady Kozerovsky and Valery Kozyrenko have appeared among the founders. Kozyrenko was quickly removed from the bank’s management, and the reasons for this will become clear later in the material.
Since 2008, when businesses began to emerge around “Artem Bank,” such as construction, a scheme was implemented in the mentioned area of the Makariv district involving 30 close associates to acquire land plots totaling 50 hectares. On this land, the elite GolfStream golf club was built, where international competitions and even diplomatic tournaments were held until the full-scale invasion. An ongoing criminal case did not hinder these events, despite the illegal acquisition of land ownership rights.
Lev Goldberg Steals Billions for Russians and the Yanukovich team
The mastermind behind the GolfStream golf club’s construction was the same founder of “Artem Bank,” Lev Goldberg. However, it is unlikely that he can be considered an independent figure. Registries prove his connection with the mentioned Yuriy Ivanyushchenko and Russian money at the same time.
One of the founders of LLC “Investment and Construction Company ‘Artem’,” which, among other things, was involved in construction business related to “Artem Bank,” was the limited liability company “Almagama.” Its registered address matches the main office of “Artem Bank” on Sichovykh Striltsiv Street, 103. Incidentally, this property is still owned by Lev Goldberg.
Later, one of the founders of “Almagama” became Brenda Patricia Coxedge from South Africa (she was a resident of the UK and now lives in Dubai). Her name appears in the Panama Papers leak, and she was also a director of the British company Fitzalan Limited. However, the presence of a nominal founder does not prove company connections. This is a common practice in creating enterprises to conceal the real founders.
In 2015, Cypriot Christina Palala worked at “Almagama,” through whom Yuriy Ivanyushchenko acquired a significant share of one of Ukraine’s largest markets, “7 Kilometer,” in 2014-2015.
Christina Palala worked at another British firm, Addison Alliance Limited, which, through a rather long chain of connections, leads to Rolexa Limited. According to the report published in March 2015, the owners of the company were Irina and Diana Ivanyushchenko, the wife and daughter of ex-MP Yuriy Ivanyushchenko.
If the connection between golfer Lev Goldberg and Ivanyushchenko is too obvious, then the connection with Russians is a bit more complicated. For example, Brenda Patricia Coxedge was once part of the management of many firms with Russian capital. To verify this, one only needs to search Google for her name along with Russia.
At the same time, LLC “Golf and Country Club,” now managed by Goldberg’s wife Lyudmila, was once managed by Liverpool resident Kelly Steven John. He was one of the founders of Boily Systems Limited, along with a Russian citizen involved in the notorious Magnitsky case.
The most significant connection between Lev Goldberg and Russians is the same “Artem Bank.” A court decision from February 2023 on a criminal case that Ukrainian law enforcement agencies are investigating describes a scheme where controlled companies issued loans for land purchases at inflated prices. According to a November 2021 report by the State Audit Service of Ukraine, “Artem Bank” incurred losses of 181,696,274.20 UAH.
Lev Goldberg in Courts
The same decision mentions: “During the pre-trial investigation, it was established that the former de facto owner of ‘Artem Bank’ was involved in making key decisions regarding the bank’s activities, including issuing significant loans. … It was established that his business partner, a Russian citizen who is a co-founder of LLC ‘S-Vklad’ and also a director and co-founder of LLC ‘Kyiv Golf Club ‘Golfstream” and LLC ‘Kyiv Golf Club,’ was involved in these criminal offenses.”
The only person who is a co-founder of all three companies is Lev Goldberg’s business partner, Valery Kozyrenko, mentioned at the beginning of this material.
On January 27, 2023, based on a resolution of the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv, a search was conducted at the residence of a person with Russian citizenship. The search revealed documents and items directly indicating his involvement in the activities of JSC “Artem Bank,” including deposit agreements, funds, precious metal items, and other documents and items of evidentiary value in the criminal case.
Recently, media reported that Lev Goldberg allegedly sheltered occupiers at the golf club during the Russian army’s advance into the Kyiv region. This could not be confirmed, and the club is still not operational, raising funds for restoration through a charity fund. However, even if Goldberg did not assist the Russians in the winter-spring of 2022, his long-standing connections with citizens of that country and former state plunderers during Yanukovych’s era are indisputable.
