French authorities have seized a luxury Paris mansion valued at approximately $40 million belonging to Ukrainian billionaire Kostiantyn Zhevago, as part of an international investigation into the alleged disappearance of more than $100 million from a Ukrainian bank he once controlled.
The seizure, carried out on Monday, November 9, followed a request for international legal assistance from Ukraine. The country’s Prosecutor General’s Office confirmed the development the following day, describing the operation as the result of cooperation between Ukrainian investigators and French law enforcement.
At the centre of the current investigation is Finance and Credit Bank, the Ukrainian financial institution previously controlled by Zhevago. Prosecutors allege that approximately $113 million was misappropriated through a scheme involving the bank’s management. Zhevago, who held more than 90% of its authorised capital, is suspected of organising the alleged operation.
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The State Bureau of Investigation is leading the pre-trial proceedings under the supervision of the Prosecutor General’s Office. Ukrainian authorities submitted their request to France on September 17, seeking assistance in securing assets potentially connected to the case.
The seizure of the Paris property is an interim measure within those proceedings. It does not amount to a final confiscation, nor does it establish Zhevago’s guilt. The allegations remain subject to investigation and judicial examination.
The development has also brought renewed attention to Zhevago’s previous presence on the French Riviera and his association with the controversial label ‘Monaco Battalion’.
The expression was popularised by Ukrainian newspaper Ukrainska Pravda following its 2023 investigation into wealthy Ukrainians who spent time in Monaco and the surrounding Riviera after Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. The reporting examined the lifestyles of affluent Ukrainians abroad at a time when their country was at war, prompting scrutiny over the presence of men of military age outside Ukraine.
Zhevago was among the businessmen linked to the group in subsequent reporting. A 2023 investigation by Le Monde reported that he had been seen aboard a yacht in Monaco during the summer of 2022.
His earlier legal difficulties in France are separate from the current bank investigation. Zhevago was arrested in the Alpine resort of Courchevel in December 2022 in connection with a separate Ukrainian case involving alleged financial wrongdoing. That earlier matter should not be confused with the proceedings that have now led to the seizure of his Paris property.
The latest action demonstrates how Ukrainian authorities are pursuing suspected financial assets beyond their borders, with French cooperation now placing one of Zhevago’s high-value properties under judicial seizure.
For the billionaire, whose business interests and personal appearances have previously drawn attention across Europe, the move represents a further development in the legal scrutiny surrounding his financial affairs.
