10 Facts for YouControl’s Anniversary

How should one approach anniversaries? There's no definitive answer. Some celebrate with fanfare, while others prefer not to highlight their age. For YouControl, however, this being our first significant milestone, we couldn't let it pass unnoticed.

Serhii Milman established YouControl LLC in September 2014. According to the Commerce Institute, only 35% of businesses make it through their first decade. Yet, rather than taking ourselves too seriously, we'd like to reflect on the moments and insights that have shaped YouControl into the platform you recognise today. 

An analytical service based on open data with the largest number of aggregated public registries

YouControl is an analytical service based on open data, aggregating information from over 220 public registers. The system compiles comprehensive profiles of every Ukrainian company and individual entrepreneur. The "Express Analysis" score verifies companies against nearly 600 criteria, including historical and current ties to Russia, Belarus, and Iran. This tool ensures compliance with financial monitoring and tax transparency requirements while offering insights into the financial status of companies and banks 

Additionally, YouControl facilitates background checks on individuals, encompassing data on affiliations with sanction lists, national public figures, and financial and industrial groups.

Express analysis by YouControl

Social initiative

YouControl has a social mission, providing special access since 2016 to media representatives, civil and anti-corruption organisations, charitable foundations, and higher education institutions. These entities use the system's data for information searches, fact-checking, anti-corruption investigations, analytical research, and verifying official declarations. Currently, we have over 600 social partners. Journalists have produced nearly 20,000 socially important investigations using YouControl's data and tools.

In the photo (from left to right): Y. Kravchenko, S. Milman, O. Shalaiska, O. Liemienov, O. Shalaiskyi, D. Bihus, N. Chornogub, 2018, "Expose with YouControl" Project

Winning a case involving a fabricated SSU charge

In 2017, the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) conducted searches at YouControl’s office and among its senior management. The investigation was unfounded and contrived from the beginning. Following extensive legal action, expert analysis, and the involvement of the media and the public, the pre-trial investigation authorities were compelled to close the criminal case. Moreover, this led to the initiation of criminal proceedings against the SSU investigator, with the prosecutor of the Office of the Prosecutor General overseeing the case facing disciplinary action. 

After a two-year struggle, we achieved several key objectives. We successfully defended our reputation and garnered strong public, media, and partner support, highlighting our shared values with conscious and responsible individuals. Additionally, we protected the concept of open data as a crucial tool for addressing critical societal issues. Our case stands as an example of how businesses can assert their rights within legal and public frameworks, even when confronted with dishonest law enforcement.

Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv City, 2018

YouControl Academy

Founded in 2020, YouControl Academy is an educational platform open to anyone seeking knowledge. It currently offers five key areas of study: Compliance, OSINT, AML, Cybersecurity, and Financial monitoring. The courses are based on practical experience and real-world case studies provided by experts from over 60 countries. Delivered online, students have the flexibility to choose topics of interest and start their learning journey. Since its inception, over 2,000 individuals have registered, with 700 successfully completing the final tests and earning certificates. 

YC Academy 

Supporting the nation and volunteering

During the first year of the full-scale war, we launched several initiatives aimed at supporting Ukraine. In partnership with Artellence and with the backing of the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU), we developed the TyHto app. This tool enabled the military, police, and territorial defense forces to verify individuals at checkpoints, ensuring no suspicious individuals or sabotage groups passed undetected.

Alongside the Ministry of Defense and the KOLO fund, we helped establish "People for Ukraine," a volunteer platform designed to meet the needs of the Armed Forces and territorial defense units.

We also launched RuAssets (now YC World), an international platform for tracking Russian and Belarusian ties in foreign companies worldwide. The platform currently tracks over 145 million international connections. Significantly, YouControl's work contributed to the seizure and confiscation of $1 billion in Russian assets, carried out by law enforcement and the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP).  

YC World

Beyond compliance and business intelligence, we introduced a tool that provided Ukrainian businesses with new opportunities during the war – YouControl.Market (YC.Market). This platform focuses on swiftly identifying reliable partners and analysing various sectors of the business landscape. 

In 2022, when cyberattacks rendered public registers inaccessible, and information was in short supply, we played a crucial role in supporting law enforcement and government agencies. Additionally, we are proud to be recognised among the top taxpayers and to stand with the IT sector in supporting Ukraine.

Our team continues to provide ongoing assistance to the Ukrainian military and civilians impacted by the conflict. We volunteer in various ways, from donations and supporting foundations to producing trench candles and camouflage nets, cleaning up areas hit by missile strikes, helping in hospitals, offering psychological support, and contributing to educational programs for Ukrainian children abroad. 

Cleanup after a missile strike in the Kyivska Oblast, 2023

Impact through Socially Significant Research

YouControl conducts in-depth analytical research on topics of significant societal importance, focusing on the state of the economy and specific industries such as banking, agriculture, IT, and energy, as well as exploring connections between companies and public figures linked to hostile states. Additionally, the company examines public procurement, officials' declarations, and sanctions lists. 

These efforts have had tangible societal benefits. For instance, after releasing an article detailing how Ukrainian companies connected to aggressor states received over a billion in government funds, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine enacted a ban on public procurement from entities associated with Russia, Belarus, and their residents.

A self-sustaining office in a private residence

In the autumn of 2022, YouControl transitioned its office from a business centre to a fully autonomous private house. This new location is designed to ensure continuous operations and provide living facilities. The house is equipped with a powerful generator, Starlink internet, backup batteries, and stockpiles of food and water for employees and their families.

The office serves not only as a workspace but also as a refuge and communal gathering space. It allows colleagues to work, learn, relax by the fireplace, bake, practice yoga outdoors, or swim in the pool. HR newsletters now feature not only organisational updates but also reminders about themed evenings, volunteer activities, meetings with a therapist and interactive events for colleagues' children.

YouControl Office

Bakery Workshop Band

Few companies can boast their own rock stars, but YouControl can. "Bakery Workshop," (Ukr. Bulochnyi Tsekh) a band formed by our colleagues, has been an integral part of our company culture since 2018. Comprising seven members, including two professional musicians and five enthusiasts, the band plays covers of well-known rock bands. They have also composed two original tracks, making them a highlight of every YouControl celebration.

Bakery Workshop Band

Connection without boundaries

Maintaining unity within a team across distances is more challenging than when everyone is located in the same office, city, or even country. However, we have successfully navigated the complexities of remote collaboration, ensuring seamless communication and workflow across borders. Our company has established protocols to swiftly accommodate changes in employees' locations, offering support as they move. We remain in constant communication to foster collaboration and mutual support. At the same time, corporate traditions like "Secret Santa" have taken on a global dimension, with gifts crossing continents to reach YouControl members worldwide.

Advocacy for open data access 

From its inception, YouControl has championed the right of citizens to access information from open sources freely, standing firm against the unlawful closure of public records. This issue took on heightened urgency after February 24, 2022, when more than 400 critical datasets were sealed. 

In response, we have engaged in public advocacy through media, formal communications with the Ministry of Digital Transformation and data custodians, and by uniting leading civil society organisations and business groups. Our research, based on a survey of 1,000 system users, pinpointed which data were most in demand and highlighted that the daily economic loss from the closure of public registers is approximately UAH 90 million.

Through persistent efforts and collaboration with engaged citizens, the media, and businesses, we have achieved notable successes in reopening key datasets, including the corruption register, officials' asset declarations, corporate financial statements from the State Statistics Service, the registry of seized assets, and partial access to the Unified State Register (USR). Our ongoing efforts focus on unlocking additional data to enable public monitoring and strengthen anti-corruption measures, with an emphasis on tax debt information, licensing data, environmental records, and complete access to the USR. 

We won't pretend that the past 10 years have flown by unnoticed. We've faced many significant changes, but our team's cohesion and our mission to foster a transparent business environment remain unchanged. We continue to innovate, developing cutting-edge analytical tools built on open data, ensuring that vital information is accessible and user-friendly.