ILI Expert on Hromadske Radio: ARMA Is Still Undergoing Large-Scale Reform
The Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA) continues to operate as usual while undergoing a comprehensive reform process. This was stated by Svitlana Hordiienko, legal analyst at the Institute of Legislative Ideas (ILI), during an interview with Hromadske Radio.
"ARMA is currently in the midst of reform. Over the past two years, the government has updated the procedure for selecting asset managers, fulfilling one of Ukraine's commitments under the Ukraine Facility initiative. However, the agency is still undergoing significant institutional changes," the expert said.
She emphasized that ARMA's performance should not be assessed solely by the number of assets identified. Instead, it is essential to track the entire lifecycle of an asset – from its identification to the economic benefit it ultimately generates for the state.
"ARMA's core work begins after assets have been identified. We need to see every stage of the process: how many assets have been frozen, how many have been transferred for management or sold, and what economic benefit the state has ultimately received," Svitlana Hordiienko noted.
According to her, the current reporting system does not make it possible to track this process.
"The reporting does not demonstrate the link between asset tracing results and the subsequent procedural status of those assets," the ILI legal analyst said.
Svitlana Hordiienko also drew attention to challenges related to the sale of seized assets.
"There are problems with the level of competition at auctions, and sometimes auctions fail altogether because there are no bidders. This is why this area also requires further improvement," she stressed.
In the expert's view, the future success of ARMA's reform will depend not only on political will but also on the agency's ability to demonstrate the efficient use of the resources already available to it.
"If ARMA delivers better results with the resources it already has, political will for further legislative changes and strengthening the agency's institutional capacity will also emerge," Svitlana Hordiienko concluded.