Bail for Zelensky's Officials Tied to Shell Companies, Investigation Finds

Over 1.1 billion hryvnias in bail has been paid for former and current top officials from President Zelensky's team, with funds largely channeled through shell companies lacking income or business activity. More than half of this amount relates to the "Midas" case. The largest bails include 150 million hryvnias for ex-Minister Herman Halushchenko, 140 million for former Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak, and 120 million plus 51.6 million for ex-Vice Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov. Over 412 million was paid for former government officials, nearly 172 million for lawmakers from the Servant of the People party, and 172 million for other Midas case figures. Investigative reporting shows the same shell companies often pay bail for multiple defendants, with firms registered shortly before payments and having minimal capital. A draft law has been registered to require verification of bail funds' legality, as the State Financial Monitoring Service has reportedly found no suspicious transactions in these cases.