“Grey Cardinal of the Capital”: Vadim Stolar – Successful Businessman and Politician or “Shadow Mayor” of Kyiv?

Scandalous developments, political ties and friendship with the mayor.

Talk in the expert community that Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko does not control the situation in the capital began several years ago. Recently these discussions have regained relevance amid numerous corruption scandals involving illegal construction, “worn-out” bridges, water supply problems, etc. Meanwhile, the new authorities at the highest level are making clear to the Kyiv mayor that the Presidential Office is dissatisfied with him and wants to remove him from at least one of his posts (head of the Kyiv City State Administration). To this end, the thesis is being pushed again – and not without basis – that Klitschko is failing to cope with his duties, being merely a formal public figure, while real power in Kyiv is shared among numerous “overseers” and “fixers” in various areas. 

Most of these “overseers,” according to a number of experts and law enforcement officers, are controlled and supervised by a man named Vadim Stolar. There is a view that Stolar is today the de facto real mayor of Kyiv. Close ties with Stolar have repeatedly been held against Klitschko. The latter, however, has claimed he has no friendship or particular contacts with the well-known businessman and politician. Some time after the mayor's latest statement that he has no ties to a major developer, the Telegram channel “Legitimny” published an exclusive video in which Klitschko, sitting beside Stolar in a restaurant (allegedly in Monaco), addresses him informally as “you,” thanks him for gathering everyone, and drinks “to friends.” Thus, the ties that many had long suspected became obvious. 

So who is Vadim Stolar, and why is he called the “grey cardinal” of the Ukrainian capital? 

Scandalous developments, political ties and friendship with the mayor: what Vadim Stolar is known for 

Vadim Stolar was born in 1982 into a family of entrepreneurs who later founded their own construction company. For a long time he worked in business structures owned by his parents, but later started his own business. He was one of the shareholders of the scandalous Conversbank, from which, together with partners, according to Russian oligarch Vladimir Antonov, he illegally withdrew more than 55 million euros. In 2006 Stolar entered politics: he was elected a deputy of the Kyiv Regional Council from “Our Ukraine.” According to him, the reason for going into politics was “responsibility before the people.” In 2007 he became a member of parliament from the “Party of Regions,” and also ran in 2012 in Kyiv's 217th constituency, where he became known for classic voter bribery (during the election campaign he placed benches bearing his surname, built and reconstructed roads, and installed children's playgrounds). In 2014, after losing the parliamentary election, he became a deputy of the Kyiv City Council. 

According to the public movement CHESNO, Stolar was linked to the Elita-Center scandal (losses amounted to $75 million), as well as several scandalous developments (in particular, a shopping center at 7 Bohdana Khmelnytskoho Street and construction in Nikolska Slobidka). However, the first truly serious scandal involving Stolar and Klitschko erupted in August 2017, when journalists spotted both of them aboard a private plane flying charter from Naples. “Skhemy” then conducted an investigation, which found that Stolar, without holding any official positions, nevertheless decides many personnel and other issues in the capital. Meanwhile, in the same 2017 Klitschko claimed that... he generally does not know who Vadim Stolar is. 

Nevertheless, many journalists, experts and even politicians have stated that the controversial developer is at least the right-hand man of the Kyiv mayor, and at most effectively runs the city. For example, People's Deputy Borislav Bereza even published the well-known “Stolar loop” diagram, according to which the mayor's inner circle includes “11 friends of Stolar” – 11 people who directly influence all of Klitschko's decisions. Among them are 2 deputy chairs of the Kyiv City State Administration and 9 heads of departments (including all departments related to construction). 

It is hard to call this a coincidence, since the lion's share of Stolar's business is connected with construction, and this construction often ends up in corruption scandals. The latest example is Klitschko's notorious “glass bridge.” It was built by Stolar's “shell” company which, according to Andriy Bohdan, head of the Presidential Office, embezzled nearly the entire budget for one of Kyiv's main transport arteries. In 2019, the program “Our Money” aired a segment according to which Stolar and his partners are building yet another high-rise right in the parking lot near the Ukraine Palace. The company Ukrzhilstroy-Plus, linked to the businessman, received permission from the Kyiv City State Administration to build a residential complex in the historic center of Kyiv. 

In informal comments to the media, people working in senior real estate positions in the capital say Stolar's role in the redistribution of land plots for development is very hard to overestimate. According to “Strana,” he effectively coordinates these processes by hand and personally oversees a number of construction projects, which often go around the law. Put simply, today it is very hard to build anything even remotely significant in Kyiv “bypassing” Vadim Stolar. 

According to journalist Yuriy Butusov, he is also in many ways Vitaly Klitschko's “manager”: it is Stolar who plans the mayor's schedule, arranges and cancels meetings, introduces him to the right people, and suggests where and what needs to be done. Taken together, the above information gives every reason to claim that it is Stolar who today has concentrated in his hands a number of formal and informal schemes, corruption flows and the mayoral functions of Kyiv. 

Now storm clouds are gathering over the notorious businessman: the new authorities at the highest level are demonstrating determination to squeeze him and his people out of the numerous schemes they are involved in. Still, given Stolar's ability to be “unsinkable” under any team at Bankova, it can be assumed that even in these unfavorable conditions he will be able to secure benefits and preferences for himself, keeping his position or at least avoiding any serious consequences of his activities. 

“Second-tier oligarch”: experts' opinions on Stolar 

Most experts agree that Stolar is today a very influential person in Kyiv, not always working honestly. Meanwhile political analyst Daniil Bogatyryov is confident that the businessman's future is murky and that he will soon be “pushed aside.” 

Daniil Bogatyryov
political analyst

“His role as the ‘overseer of Kyiv’ consists of informally managing land allocation and obtaining lucrative construction contracts through sham tenders. The brightest example is the construction of the Shulyavsky Bridge. In fact, these schemes are as simple as can be. Either Kyiv City Council deputies are bribed and corrupt land allocation for development is carried out, or fictitious companies are created to take part in tenders for work, which then win the tender and receive a construction contract at several times the market price.”

Meanwhile political analyst Mykola Spiridonov believes that, despite significant influence in the capital, Stolar's role as Kyiv's “grey cardinal” is somewhat exaggerated. 

Mykola Spiridonov
political analyst

“Stolar is a second-tier oligarch… He has tried to be present in Kyiv's construction business under any government…. Under Klitschko his influence grew, since he became in a sense close to Klitschko himself, and his business began to develop well… He tries to stay closer to power and to financial flows, since construction business is practically impossible without the support of authorities. Stolar can be compared with Rinat Akhmetov: his task is to preserve business under any government. However, a ‘shadow ruler’ is an exaggeration and demonization of Stolar.”

The political analyst also suggests that the businessman may manage to reach an agreement with the new authorities, as he has repeatedly done before, but nothing can be said for certain.

She agrees with him: journalist of the CHESNO movement Tetiana Katrychenko, who conducted anti-corruption investigations into Stolar, says that Stolar is good at adapting, so there is every chance that this time too he will come out of it unscathed.

Tetiana Katrychenko
CHESNO movement journalist

“Stolar wanted to secure the Obolon district… In the 2015 local elections to the Kyiv City Council he did not run himself, but sent at least 4 of his representatives from Obolon. He is connected to each of them in one way or another. The fact that Zelensky's team does not want to cooperate with him is a consequence of the fact that he went (and took his people) onto the list of ‘Opposition Platform – For Life.’ Stolar has a knack for adapting – now to the ‘Party of Regions,’ now to ‘Our Ukraine,’ now to ‘Solidarity.’”