You're reading: Ukrainian authorities to harden fight against fraud on financial market

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine is carefully following the situation on the financial markets and is actively developing measures to counteract financial fraud, the press service of first Deputy Premier of Ukraine Serhiy Arbuzov has reported.

“A bill that bans financial pyramid schemes in Ukraine has been registered in parliament, and I hope it will be adopted soon. The document is aimed at protecting citizens against any fraudsters that work on the financial market, and whose number during the crisis sharply grew,” the report quotes Arbuzov as saying.

Moreover, the press service said that to prevent development of fraudulent schemes, the bill foresees the introduction of criminal punishment for those who create financial pyramids of up to eight years of imprisonment.

“The law will be a basis for a systemic and operative fight against the development of criminal businesses. The government has already started rather constructive work with the association of entrepreneurs and the public regarding suppression of any possible methods of financial fraud of Ukrainians,” Arbuzov said.

According to him, the government is working on the creation of efficient legal constructions to bring to account the organizers of “electronic MMM financial pyramid schemes” that exist only virtually.

“This is a complicated question, since such schemes are based on e-money, organizations are legally registered nowhere, the money of “depositors” is not transferred to the organizer, but are stored on their personal accounts and accounts of intermediaries,” the first deputy premier said.

In addition, he said that in the nearest future measures to fight financial pyramids on the stock market will be drawn out, as well as activity of pseudo forex brokers that tell Ukrainians that they can earn money on the international money markets.

“Private entrepreneurs, who work on the financial market, won’t suffer. I’m sure that from the establishment of transparent rules of game on the market of financial services, both businesses and the state benefit,” Arbuzov said.