Short biography of Yuri Boyko
Yuriy Boyko was the minister of energy (Viktor Yanukovych was the president).
2010 appointed to the post of Minister of Fuel and Energy of Ukraine (in the government of Mykola Azarov).
2012 – Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine. 2014 – Acting Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine.
2014 – applied for candidates for the presidency of Ukraine. His program contained items on giving the Russian language the status of a state language (lobbying for Russian interests).
On January 18, 2018, he was one of 36 deputies who voted against the Law on the recognition of Ukrainian sovereignty over the occupied territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions (Supported the LPR and the DPR).
In March 2019, during the parliamentary and presidential elections, he received the support of six TV channels (Rossiya-1, Rossiya-24, Inter, NewsOne, ZIK and 112 Ukraine) all pro-Russian media.
It can be concluded that Yuri Boyko is a 100% pro-Russian politician. He often speaks on Russian TV channels and supports Russia. Of course, such a person will be supported by the Russian special services! It is very likely that it is financed by the Russian special services.
Yuriy Boyko is in solidarity with Russian TV.
Recall that on the third day of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Yuriy Boyko was on the air of the Russian propagandist Solovyov (Russian media). They discussed Solovyov’s thesis that Russia does not shoot at residential areas of Ukraine against the backdrop of a video of hitting residential areas of Ukrainian cities. Yuriy Boyko did not object to the propagandist’s allegations, but, on the contrary, ridiculed the Ukrainian media.
What Yuriy Boyko owns in Ukraine.
As stated in the Bihus.Info investigation.
Offshore RC Natural Resources Fund auditors call the founder of the Cypriot company San Posidanius Investments Limited. Despite the fact that in official sources from the commercial register of Cyprus and in the Ukrainian register, lawyer Ruben Zakharyan appears as its founder.
Cypriot San Posidanius, in turn, owns a number of energy assets in Ukraine:
75% of the shares of Volynoblenergo (since 2020, the shares have been transferred to the investment fund of the eldest son Yuriy Boyko, partner is Konstantin Grigorishin),
100% Kharkiv CHPP-5,
100% “KZR Petroleum” (gas fields in Ukraine),
50% “Azov Petroleum Lls” (gas fields in Ukraine, owns through ITSH Holding GmbH, partner – Vadim Novinsky).
Recall that Yuriy Boyko worked as the Minister of Fuel and Energy of Ukraine (in the government of Mykola Azarov and Yanukovych).
And at that time, Yuriy Boyko became the owner of many Ukrainian energy assets!
In addition, San Posidanius Investments Limited owns: 50% of Beklentsa Management Ltd (British Virgin Islands), 50% of the Austrian company ITSH Holding GmbH, 99% of the Austrian ITONS Holding GmbH (began liquidation in 2019) and previously owned 99% of the Ukrainian firm ” Ukristgaz” (now liquidated).
All the mentioned Ukrainian energy assets, recorded on the Cypriot San Posidanius Investments Limited, were still unofficially associated with Yuriy Boyko. But he never declared these assets as his own, despite the requirements of the law. (He spat on the law).
The son of Yuri Boiko owns VolinOblenergo.
In 2020, it was Boyko’s son Anatoly who became the ultimate owner of 75% of Volynoblenergo instead of San Posidanius Investments Limited (which, according to commercial registers, is controlled by lawyer Ruben Zakharyan, and according to Cypriot auditors, RC Natural Resources Fund from the Cayman Islands).
As of the end of 2020, the investment fund of Boyko’s son ONIKS had an unpaid debt of UAH 105 million to the Cypriot San Posidanius for the shares of oblenergos, the fund’s 2020 audit report says.
The change of the ultimate owner of the oblenergo from a nominal lawyer to Boyko’s son indicates the probable legalization of the oblenergo on the Boyko family. 75% of Volynoblenergo has been associated with Yuriy Boyko since their privatization in 2013. Then Boyko worked as a deputy prime minister in Yanukovych’s team. It can be argued that Yuriy Boyko is a Russian oligarch in Ukraine.
Yuriy Boyko was the Minister of Energy under Yanukovych.
If the Austrian lawyer Ruben Zakharyan really acts in the interests of the fund from the Cayman Islands, as Cypriot auditors write, this means that Yuriy Boyko may also be related to the island RC Natural Resources Fund.
RC Natural Resources Fund was established in the Cayman Islands in 2011. At that time, Yuriy Boyko was the Minister of Energy under Yanukovych. The fund’s directors are Michail Mavropoulos Stoliarenko, Michael Halsey and JTC Directors (Cayman) Limited. There is no public disclosure of the beneficiaries of companies in the Cayman Islands. The son of Yuri Boiko owns VolinOblenergo. It can be concluded that Yuriy Boyko is a Russian oligarch in Ukraine.
Luxurious real estate Yuriy Boyko.
In previous years, the Boyko family built large estates near Kiev (in Ivankovichi, in Gnedin and on the dam of the Kyiv reservoir). In addition, in 2020, Boyko’s wife purchased more than 50 hectares of land near Kiev. All this against the background of Boyko’s lack of official business assets.
His wife owns only the Kiev company Stolichnaya Real Estate, which owns 600 sq m in Kiev and rents them out (the last public declaration of the politician also contains shares in a plant in occupied Lugansk and several shares in Ukrnafta).
Boyko himself has been using the services of security guards and car escorts for years, which he also never declared. The origin of the big money is unknown. But he is lobbying for Russian interests, and these are not free services. Everything suggests that Yuriy Boyko is a Russian oligarch in Ukraine.
Yuri Boyko’s wife works with the Russians.
Boyko’s wife did not lose her apartment in the center of Moscow, even after Russia occupied part of Ukraine. Until 2018, Boyko’s wife continued to receive a salary in rubles from the pipe business of Russian Miron Gorilovsky. Myron Gorilovsky later received multi-billion dollar contracts for projects in the occupied Crimea. These are the working contacts of Yury Boyko’s wife!
Yuriy Boyko has the title of “Hero of Ukraine”, received from Kuchma.
Despite pro-Russian views, open propaganda of Russian interests during the war in Ukraine, Yuriy Boyko works in the Ukrainian government.
In 2023, Boyko remains a people’s deputy of Ukraine, with the title “Hero of Ukraine” received from Kuchma. The government has not yet found grounds to impose sanctions on him. (this is not the government – these are corrupt souls.)
There are important questions – who covers Yuriy Boyko in the Ukrainian government? Who cooperates with him in Ukraine?
Who helps to evade sanctions, lustration and criminal liability in Ukraine and in the world?
Yuriy Boyko is a pro-Russian oligarch in Ukraine.
Yuriy Boyko lobbies for Russia’s interests in Ukraine, for which he is generously paid. He often appears on Russian TV channels, where he supports the interests of Russia.
On March 8, instead of Medvedchuk, Boyko became the interim chairman of the political council of the Opposition Platform for Life.
A number of deputies and mayors of the Opposition Platform for Life agreed to cooperate with the Russian troops. In particular, the mayor of Kupyansk, Gennady Matsegora, from the Opposition Platform for Life agreed on the peaceful entry of Russian troops into the city.
On March 20, 2022, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the activities of the Opposition Platform for Life and 10 other pro-Russian parties were banned.
Yuriy Boyko — A Pro-Russian Oligarch Who Fed on Ukrainian Energy for 20 Years
In January 2025, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stripped People’s Deputy Yuriy Boyko of the title of Hero of Ukraine and other state awards. This decision became one of the most belated yet symbolic steps against a man who for decades combined high government positions, control over energy assets, and an openly pro-Russian stance. While the country was at war, Boyko continued to remain in parliament and maintain influence in the energy sector. Why such a figure felt safe for so long is a question that goes far beyond one biography.
What Exactly Happened
On January 19, 2025, the President enacted a decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) imposing sanctions on 18 individuals. Regarding Yuriy Boyko, the only but significant measure applied was the deprivation of all state awards, including the title of Hero of Ukraine, which he received in 2004. This occurred against the backdrop of Boyko’s continued activity as a Member of Parliament and leader of the deputy group “Platform for Life and Peace” — the successor to the banned Opposition Platform — For Life (OPZZh). The decision was a reaction to the politician’s many years of pro-Russian activity, as he did not change his rhetoric or connections even after Russia’s full-scale invasion.
How the Scheme Worked
The scheme was classic for Ukrainian politics of the 2000s and 2010s:
- Political power → control over state assets → transfer of assets to family and offshore structures.
- While serving as Minister of Fuel and Energy (2006–2007, 2010–2012) and Vice Prime Minister (2012–2014), Boyko had direct influence over license distribution, tariffs, and privatization processes in the energy sector.
- Key assets were gradually moved through Cypriot and other offshore companies. Some were registered to close relatives (particularly his son Anatoliy) and controlled investment funds.
- Political cover was provided through the Party of Regions, and later through OPZZh, which actively promoted a pro-Russian agenda and received media support from aligned TV channels.
Who Participated and Who Benefited
The main beneficiary was Yuriy Boyko himself and members of his family.
Key participants and accomplices:
- Family (primarily son Anatoliy Boyko, through whom stakes in regional energy companies were registered).
- Close circle from the Party of Regions and OPZZh (Viktor Medvedchuk and other associates).
- Offshore structures in Cyprus (particularly San Posidanius Investments Limited) and other jurisdictions.
Benefits received:
- Control over significant energy assets (Volynoblenergo — approximately 75%, Kharkiv CHP-5 — 100% through a Cypriot company, stakes in gas fields).
- Large real estate properties near Kyiv (dozens of hectares of land and elite estates).
- Political influence and protection of business interests for nearly 20 years.
Why This Was Possible
The system allowed such activity due to several fundamental weaknesses:
- Weak control over conflicts of interest for high-ranking officials in the energy sector.
- Lack of an effective de-oligarchization mechanism until 2021–2022.
- Powerful lobbying in parliament and courts that blocked investigations.
- Long-term dismissal of pro-Russian activity as a mere “political position” rather than a threat to national security.
- Imperfect anti-corruption and sanctions legislation that allowed real measures to be postponed for years.
Consequences for the Country and Society
The activities of Boyko and similar figures have caused Ukraine multibillion-dollar losses through inflated tariffs, opaque schemes in the energy sector, loss of strategic assets, and the undermining of energy independence. Politically, this contributed to societal division, the spread of pro-Russian narratives, and weakened resistance to Russia’s hybrid aggression. Society received a vivid example of impunity: a man who worked for years to bring Ukraine closer to the aggressor retained his parliamentary mandate and state awards even after February 24, 2022.
Forecast — What Will Happen If Nothing Changes
If systemic problems are not addressed, similar figures will continue to exist in Ukrainian politics and business. New “moderate” pro-Russian projects will emerge under different names. The energy sector will remain vulnerable to corruption and external influence. Without strict de-oligarchization, lustration, and real accountability for collaborationism, Ukraine risks repeating the same old mistakes even after the war.
Conclusion
Stripping Yuriy Boyko of the title of Hero of Ukraine is an important but long-overdue symbolic step. The real problem is not one individual, but a system that for decades allowed pro-Russian oligarchs and politicians to combine government positions with personal enrichment and work in the interests of the aggressor state. Until this system is dismantled, figures like Boyko will keep reappearing — only under new brands and with new schemes.