Photo from UNIAN

An international arrest warrant is being prepared for Ukrainian billionaire Kostyantyn Zhevaho, who the newly created State Bureau of Investigations (DBR) suspects of large-scale money laundering and embezzlement of funds from a bank he formerly owned.

DBR chief Roman Truba said in a briefing on October 9 that an arrest warrant was issued for the metals magnate in Ukraine and that documents were being prepared for an international wanted notice, RFE/RL reported.

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According to procedure, a court must first rule on whether Zhevaho can be arrested and within the scope of an international arrest warrant.

Authorities suspect that Zhevaho funneled UAH 2.5 billion, or $100 million at the current exchange rate, from his former Finance and Credit bank.

The bank was shuttered as part of the central bank's drive after 2014 to clean up the dirty banking system that was riddled with third-party lending practices. Some 80 banks lost their licenses over a two-year period, with some going into receivership while others were liquidated.

Zhevaho, a former lawmaker, is also the majority owner of Ferrexpo, a London-traded iron ore pellet producer based in Poltava, a centrally-located region in Ukraine. The company boasts Europe's largest iron-ore deposit, with approximately 20 billion tons of resources.

On its website, Ferrexpo says it is the third-largest exporter of pellets to the global steel industry.