NBU Council head attempts to explain reprimand of two executives

Bohdan Danylyshyn, the head of the Council of the
National Bank of Ukraine, published on Oct. 7 on the NBU’s website his
explanation for reprimanding Kateryna Rozhkova and Dmytro Sologub, two deputy
governors. Recall, the council voted on Oct. 2
to reprimand Rozhkova and Sologub, as well as declare its distrust in them.
Danylyshyn wrote the reason for the reprimands was the comments of the officials
to the Kyiv Post newspaper about “the institutional independence and personnel
policy” of the NBU. Also taken into consideration was a letter from the NBU
governor, possibly addressed to the council.

“Unfortunately, in recent years, the NBU’s independence
has been talked about only during the assessments of certain inadequate actions
of certain NBU officials, who in most cases identified themselves with the NBU
as an institution, although they were only operational executives,” Danylyshyn
wrote.

Another member of the NBU Council, Vitaliy Shapran,
commented in his blog that the reprimand is a “tolerant” move with respect to
the two executives. “In the troubled 90s, some board members would have been
simply attacked at the entrance of their own home,” he wrote, referring to the
1998 assassination of Vadym Hetman, the former NBU governor at the time.

Alexander Paraschiy: This
explanation on the regulator’s website looks ridiculous and points to a huge
internal conflict inside the institution. Rozhkova and Sologub are under
intense pressure and are very likely to quit soon. As we wrote before, their
exit will likely mean a significant roll back in the relationship between the
IMF and Ukraine, resulting in a further delay of the next IMF deal.

Meanwhile, it’s better to see officials like
Sologub speaking on behalf of the NBU and representing the institution, rather
than people like Danylyshyn or Shapran.