ARMA has begun implementing the recommendations of the Accounting Chamber

The National Agency of Ukraine for the Detection, Tracing and Management of Assets Obtained from Corruption and Other Crimes (hereinafter – ARMA, the Agency) has developed an action plan for implementation of the recommendations of the Accounting Chamber and created working groups for their implementation.

At the end of last year, the Accounting Chamber conducted audit of the compliance use of state budget funds and management of ARMA assets, which covered the Agency's activities in the period 2022-2023 and the first half of 2024. Responsible for the audit – member of the Accounting Chamber Yelizaveta Pushko-Tsybulyak.

The audit of the Accounting Chamber established that since the establishment of the Agency in 2016, a comprehensive asset management system has not been created. Performing asset management functions, ARMA did not have sufficient tools necessary to preserve and, if possible, maximize the economic value of assets and obtain additional financial effect.

The process of accepting and transferring assets into management (for sale) by the Agency took place in conditions of imperfect regulatory framework, insufficient and fragmented information, unregulated relations between ARMA and prosecutor's offices and pre-trial investigation into the issues of accepting and transferring assets into management.

The Accounting Chamber provided a number of recommendations to eliminate the identified shortcomings, some of which the Agency has already begun to implement. In particular, according to ARMA, to improve the asset management process, state-owned banks were selected that in 2025 will service transactions with cash and bank metals accepted for management by APMA.

The Agency also reported that it has begun developing draft regulations to improve asset management processes. The documents will concern, in particular:

- lifting restrictions on obtaining the owner's consent and providing for appropriate preventive measures;

- regulating the interaction between pre-trial investigation bodies and the Agency when preparing motions to seize assets that are planned to be transferred to ARMA;

- determining specific measures and clear deadlines for transferring assets to the agency's management from the moment the court's decision is issued for all participants in the process and establishing deadlines for transferring assets to managers;

- improving the competitive selection of asset managers and regulating the process of selecting asset appraisers during their implementation;

- improving the procedure for monitoring the effectiveness of asset management, etc.

In addition, the Agency is working to reflect in the accounting records all assets that it has accepted for management. Measures are also being taken to conduct an inventory of court decisions that provide for the transfer of assets to the management of ARMA with the involvement of representatives of the Prosecutor General's Office.

In general, the Agency has begun implementing all 10 recommendations provided.

We also note that the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted as a basis the draft law  on amendments to certain legislative acts of Ukraine regarding strengthening the institutional capacity of ARMA and improving asset management mechanisms (reg. No. 12374-d).

The Accounting Chamber continues to monitor the implemented recommendations under this audit and will inform the public about them.