Asters has acted as local Ukrainian counsel to JSC Oschadbank, one of the largest financial institutions in the country, in connection with its claim against the Russian Federation for recovery of compensation as a result of the total loss of its investments in Crimea, with Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP acting as the lead counsel.

On 26 November 2018 an international arbitral tribunal issued its final award sustaining Oschadbank's claims in full. The amount to be recovered is USD 1.3 billion plus post-award interest. This award has become the first victory of a Ukrainian state-owned company in a matter concerning restoration of Crimea-related rights and interests through an international investment protection mechanism.

Andriy Pyshnyy, Chairman of the Management Board at Oschadbank, points out: “Thanks to the coordinated work of our in-house team headed by Andriy Pozhidayev, Iryna Mudra and Iryna Kireeva and experienced external advisors, Oschadbank has become the first banking institution to win a case related to recovery of compensation as a result of the total loss of investments in Crimea. We are grateful to Asters team consisting of professionals of the highest level for four years of successful cooperation within this complex case.” 

Alex Gerbi, partner at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, comments: “The Asters attorneys formed an invaluable part of the team representing Oschadbank in this unprecedented case. They have contributed extensively to the development and preparation of all aspects of the case and to the overall success. It has been a pleasure working with such a capable and dedicated team.”

Asters' key team working on this project included Partner Svitlana Chepurna, Senior Associates Anna Tkachova and Maryna Golovko under the general supervision of the Firm's Co-Managing Partner Oleksiy Didkovskiy. 

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The Public Joint-Stock Company "State Savings Bank of Ukraine" is the leading bank in Ukraine with the widest network of offices. The Bank is actively working in all financial sectors. Among its clients are the largest companies in Ukraine. Oschadbank's leading position in the market has been confirmed by the "Top 50 Banks of Ukraine" independent ranking.

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP is a 780-lawyer business litigation firm – the largest in the world devoted solely to business litigation and arbitration. The Firm's lawyers have tried over 2,600 cases and won 88% of them. Lawyers of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan have won over USD 60 billion in judgments and settlements and have also obtained five 9-figure jury verdicts, thirty-four 9-figure settlements, and fifteen 10-figure settlements.

Asters is the largest law firm in Ukraine with offices in Kyiv, Washington D.C. and Brussels. Chambers Europe 2018 recognizes 22 lawyers of Asters – the largest number of the renowned practitioners in a single Ukrainian law firm.