About the IEC’s owner Maksym Krippa

Who is Maksym Krippa

Maksym Krippa is a Ukrainian entrepreneur and investor whose business interests span commercial real estate, esports and game development. His assets and investments include the esports organisation NAVI, the GSC Game World studio known for the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series, and the media company Maincast. In Kyiv, he owns the Parus business centre, Hotel Ukraine and the International Exhibition Centre.

In April 2026, the entrepreneur announced that his business lines would be brought together under the ARS Capital brand. As reported by Forbes (in Ukrainian), the idea was a shared management system in which each business’s operations are run by its own management team.

How the IEC was acquired

The deal had two stages. In June 2025, Maksym Krippa gained control of about 75% of the International Exhibition Centre. The acquired stake comprised the 50.04% held by A.T.V.T. Business Expo Holdings and the stakes of Anatolii and Olena Tkachenko — 12.49% each. In May, the Antimonopoly Committee had already allowed Citadel Ventures Cyprus Limited, whose beneficiary is Krippa, to acquire control of A.T.V.T. Business Expo Holdings. The structure of the deal was reported by Interfax-Ukraine (in Ukrainian).

The remaining 24.98% stayed with the Asborn venture fund, whose beneficiary was Maryna Dorokhina. It was this stake that became the second stage of the acquisition.

According to Forbes (in Ukrainian), in March 2026 Maksym Krippa consolidated 100% of the IEC. The outlet reported this in July, citing YouControl data and confirmation from the businessman’s representatives. So he gained control of the centre in 2025 and became its sole owner in 2026.

What plans the new owner announced

After acquiring the controlling stake in June 2025, Krippa spoke about keeping the IEC’s team and rethinking the exhibition space: more modern formats, innovation and inclusiveness. At the same time, no immediate expansion or reconstruction was planned. These intentions were set out in a comment on the acquisition of the centre (in Ukrainian).

The IEC’s further development also depends on the conditions in which events can be held. An exhibition requires advance preparation: companies plan their participation, organisers build the programme, and participants arrange meetings. The security situation can change much faster than this whole process.

The exhibition business during the war

Russian shelling affects the ability to hold exhibitions and forces already agreed plans to be revised. For companies, it also means uncertainty: whether a presentation will take place, whether partners will come, whether planned negotiations can be held.

Commenting on the impact of the attacks on the exhibition industry, Maksym Krippa, CEO of the ARS Capital holding, explains:

People’s safety and shelters

In September 2026, ARS Capital announced that three shelters with a total capacity of 2,223 people had been set up at the IEC. According to the company, the facilities have been equipped with an autonomous power supply, drinking water reserves and fire protection systems. Residents of neighbouring buildings can also use them. This information was published by Interfax-Ukraine (in Ukrainian).

Having shelters is part of preparing to operate in wartime. A decision to hold an exhibition requires a separate assessment of current risks. In his comment, Krippa stresses:

What forced pauses mean for business

When an exhibition does not take place, the consequences are felt both by the venue and by the companies that had counted on using the event for sales, presentations or finding partners. The scale of these consequences should not be reduced to an unconfirmed loss figure.

Speaking about lost revenue, Maksym Krippa refrains from final estimates:

How the security situation affects the exhibition calendar

The IEC continues to operate, but the security situation forces changes to the calendar: some exhibitions have been postponed and certain events cancelled. Further decisions on holding them depend on current conditions. Speaking about a return to full-scale exhibition activity, Maksym Krippa notes:

For exhibitors and visitors, this means plans should be checked against announcements from the organisers of each specific exhibition. The postponement or cancellation of individual events does not mean the complex itself has stopped operating.