Asters acts as legal counsel to Oschadbank in connection with a high-profile incident involving the bank’s cash collection employees in Hungary. The firm’s team, together with international legal advisers, is taking all necessary legal steps to safeguard the interests of the bank and its employees.
A press conference on the case took place on 24 March 2026 in Kyiv, with the participation of Oschadbank’s Chairman of the Board Yurii Katsion, cash collection employee Gennadiy Kuznetsov, and Asters’ Managing Partner Oleksiy Didkovskiy, who leads the legal team on the case.
During the event, Oleksiy Didkovskiy stated: “Our priority steps are to restore the bank employees’ right to unimpeded entry into Schengen countries and to file claims for compensation for the direct and indirect losses incurred by the bank. This incident is unprecedented, so particular legal solutions in this case will be applied for the first time.”
On 5 March 2026, Oschadbank reported the unjustified detention in Hungary of two vehicles belonging to its cash collection service, along with seven members of its crew. The vehicles were transporting USD 40 million, EUR 35 million, and 9 kilograms of gold. On 6 March, the employees were deported to Ukraine and banned from entering the Schengen area for the next three years. On 12 March, the bank received the damaged vehicles lacking communication and video surveillance equipment. Following decisions by the Hungarian Government and Parliament, the bank’s funds and valuables were detained for at least 60 days.
Oschadbank JSC is a Ukrainian state-owned commercial bank, with 100% of its shares belonging to the state. Serving over 6 million customers, the bank is the second largest in Ukraine by financial assets and manages the country’s most extensive branch network.
Asters is the largest full-service law firm in Ukraine with offices in Kyiv, Brussels, London, and Washington, D.C. The firm has access to over 125 jurisdictions through a well-developed network of partner law firms.
