Ukraine’s state-owned Oschadbank and the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) have launched a coordinated effort to recover two armored vehicles and a shipment of currency and gold being held by Hungarian authorities.
The bank said that $40 million, €35 million ($40.4 million), and 9 kilograms of gold have been illegally confiscated.
On March 5, Hungarian officials intercepted an Oschadbank convoy with seven employees transporting the assets from Vienna to Ukraine.
A day later, Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha confirmed that the seven Ukrainian nationals had been returned to Ukraine – but the physical assets, which have a total value of approximately $79 million, have not been released.
Oschadbank insists on a return of assets
Oschadbank issued an official statement demanding return of its property, stating that the transport from Vienna was conducted under a regular agreement with Raiffeisen Bank Austria and followed all European customs procedures.
“Oschadbank is absolutely confident in the legality of its actions. The full scope of information and supporting documents has been submitted to the National Bank of Ukraine,” the bank stated in an official release received by Kyiv Post.
The bank is now pursuing two legal tracks: challenging the “unjustified” entry bans imposed on its couriers by Hungarian migration services and taking formal steps to reclaim the seized assets. To confirm the legality of its operation, Oschadbank commissioned an independent audit by an international firm to review all contractual relations involved in the transfer.
NBU to involve EU institutions in asset dispute
The head of Ukraine’s central bank, Andriy Pyshny, slammed the Hungarian authorities’ actions on Facebook, describing the return of the staff as only one part of a larger crisis. He said that Ukrainian consuls and lawyers were initially denied access to the detainees, calling the situation an unacceptable breach of international norms.
“We are faced with a situation where a consul cannot reach the citizens of his country, and where political statements are made without any confirmation,” Pyshny wrote.
He confirmed that the NBU has verified all documentation regarding the transport and found “no questions” regarding its legality, adding that the regulator is now bringing the matter to the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Commission.
Former Oschadbank CEO Sergiy Naumov clarified that such transfers are routine banking operations necessary to supply the Ukrainian market with physical cash.
In a Facebook post, he said that Ukrainians bought cash foreign currency worth $24 billion and sold almost $17 billion in 2025, necessitating constant international logistics. In January 2026, they bought cash currency worth more than $1.3 billion.
“That is, we are talking about a market with billions of monthly volumes, which banks must physically provide with cash,” Naumov noted.
He said that the seized funds belong to Oschadbank’s customers and that their removal constitutes a direct loss to the bank. The route through Hungary was a standard, pre-planned path chosen weeks in advance, making it impossible to change “in a minute” despite sudden political tensions, he added
Although Hungary has already returned the personnel to Ukraine, the legal status of the seized assets remains tied to an investigation by Hungarian law enforcement.
In an interview with Kyiv Post, Dr. Lóránt Horváth, lead attorney for Oschadbank and its staff, said that the investigation by Hungarian authorities into suspected money laundering is targeting an “unknown perpetrator” in a freshly launched criminal case. The employees were questioned only as witnesses and never formally charged, but were subjected to “coercive measures” during their interception at a gas station.
Since authorities had no grounds for criminal charges, they launched immigration proceedings to deport the seven Ukrainians from the country. This allowed Hungary to hand over the bank personnel at the border while keeping the armored vehicles and cash as “evidence” in the ongoing criminal case.
Throughout the initial detention, which lasted over 24 hours, Hungarian authorities reportedly denied Ukrainian lawyers and diplomats access to the citizens.