The Economic Court of Minsk has completed the liquidation of the Closed Joint-Stock Company BelaPAN — the founder of the BelaPAN news agency. On 23 December 2025, Judge Alyaksandr Khaneuski issued a “ruling on the completion of liquidation proceedings”, Pozirk reported.
The court ordered individual entrepreneur Ruslan Kulich, appointed as anti-crisis manager in September 2024, to close the debtor’s bank accounts within five working days from the date the court ruling enters into legal force, before the debtor is removed from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs.
The ruling could have been appealed to the appellate instance of the same court within 15 days from its issuance, but it is unknown whether Kulich exercised this right.
In March 2024, the Prosecutor General’s Office reported the liquidation of BelaPAN following a lawsuit by the Prosecutor’s Office of Minsk’s Piersamaiski District. The press release stated that the company committed “gross violations of tax legislation and state social insurance legislation”. The prosecutor’s office calculated more than 590,000 roubles in arrears to the Social Security Fund (FSZN) for 2014–2021 and more than 417,000 roubles owed to the tax authorities.
In October 2022, the trial in the “BelaPAN case” was completed. Former deputy director Andrei Aliaksandrau received 14 years in prison, his wife Iryna Zlobina — 9 years, former director Dzmitry Navazhylau — 6 years, and former director Iryna Leushyna — 4 years (she has since been released).
In September 2024, the Economic Court of Minsk reviewed a bankruptcy petition filed by the Minsk City Department of the FSZN against BelaPAN. The FSZN assessed the debt at 612,992 roubles. The court appointed an anti-crisis manager, who collected creditor claims against BelaPAN. The Minsk Piershamaiski District Tax Inspectorate claimed the company owed 521,617 roubles, and the Minsk branch of Belgosstrakh claimed 8,417 roubles. The total debt, including state fees, was assessed at 1,143,028 roubles 11 kopecks. The manager concluded that the debtor was insolvent.
In December 2024, the “creditors” announced their decision to file a lawsuit seeking subsidiary liability.
In the lawsuit, manager Kulich presented himself on behalf of BelaPAN. The defendants were Aliaksandrau and Navazhylau. The court’s decision was to satisfy the plaintiff’s claim in full, citing allegedly “established intentional actions of the defendants”.
As a result, the debt amount was added to the fines imposed on Aliaksandrau and Navazhylau in the 2022 verdict. Aliaksandrau had previously been fined 1,000 base units (32,000 roubles at the time), and Navazhylau — 700 base units (22,400 roubles).
At the 23 December 2024 hearing, the court accepted the anti-crisis manager’s explanations and agreed that “the debtor is unable to fulfil monetary obligations, is insolvent and is subject to liquidation.”
