Tatsiana Zaretskaya

Tatsiana Zaretskaya
OccupationBusinessperson Edit this on Wikidata
Websitetatsianazaretskaya.com Edit this on Wikidata

Tatsiana Zaretskaya (Belarusian: Таццяна Зарэцкая; born 1994) is a Belarusian entrepreneur and the co-founder of the software firm Laava Tech.[1] Zaretskaya was nominated to the Belarusian United Transitional Cabinet in September 2022, with responsibility for Finance and Economy.[2][3] On 2 November 2022, she announced that she had resigned from the Cabinet as a result of weeks of threats to her family, friends, and employees.[4] Following her resignation, independent media published investigations raising significant doubts about the viability and legitimacy of her business.

In 2024, the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) launched a criminal fraud investigation into Zaretskaya and Laava Tech, demanding the return of over €2 million in European Union subsidies.[5]

Childhood and studies

Tatsiana Zaretskaya was born in 1994 in Minsk, Belarus, to a family of chemists.[6] She initially studied international relations at the Belarusian State University before transferring to an educational program in Estonia. She also has training as a lawyer.[7][6]

Laava Tech

At the age of 23,[8] Zaretskaya co-founded Laava Tech, a software firm based in Tallinn that claimed to develop software and hardware for minimizing energy use in LEDs for indoor farming.[1] Zaretskaya described Laava Tech's system as providing a fully automated system for controlling lighting, air flows, and irrigation, using Internet of things sensors for monitoring.[8] She claimed the technology could reduce electricity consumption by 75% while simultaneously improving crop yields by 20%.[6] Based on these pitches, Laava Tech secured a European Union grant of around €2.4 million.[5]

United Transitional Cabinet

On 9 September 2022, Zaretskaya was announced as the member of the Belarusian United Transitional Cabinet responsible for Finance and Economy.[2][3] Prior to her appointment, she passed a polygraph test administered by the BYPOL initiative and a security check by the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[9]

Two months later, on 2 November 2022, Zaretskaya announced her resignation from the Cabinet, citing severe pressure and threats to people around her. She stated that there had been "a barrage of anonymous messages, letters, calls, direct threats" to her friends, relatives, employees, partners, and investors.[4]

Following the resignation, Zerkalo and Nasha Niva attempted to interview Zaretskaya about the threats, as well as the technology, revenue, and overall success of Laava Tech.[10][6] Zaretskaya answered questions regarding the threats but avoided providing any detailed answers concerning her business, and reportedly threatened journalists with lawsuits for investigating her company.[10][6]

Democratic leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya later admitted that the Cabinet made a mistake by failing to conduct a thorough background check and proper due diligence on Zaretskaya's business claims before appointing her.[9]

Scrutiny and fraud investigation

In November 2022, an independent investigation by Nasha Niva highlighted numerous "red flags" regarding Zaretskaya's background and business. Financial analysts pointed out that her startup lacked scientific proof for its technological claims, had no verifiable prototypes or visible commercial clients, and showed significant discrepancies between publicly claimed revenues and official financial reports.[11] It was also revealed that Zaretskaya had participated in a fraudulent investor conference in Monaco organized by a known scammer.[6] Furthermore, it was alleged that Laava Tech manipulated its EU grant conditions by creating a temporary shell company in Poland, obtaining a small Polish government grant, and transferring it to the Estonian parent company to falsely simulate "commercialization" required to unlock the next EU funding tranche.[6]

By mid-2024, open-source registries showed that Laava Tech had effectively ceased operations, failing to submit required financial statements in Estonia and shrinking to just one employee, having failed to sustain itself after the EU grant tranches ended.[12]

In 2025, Zaretskaya officially relocated to the United Arab Emirates, becoming a tax resident there. She subsequently rebranded herself as a networking intermediary, offering European startups paid introductions to supposedly high-level Saudi Arabian investors and royal family members for fees ranging from $45,000 to $110,000.[13][14]

In February 2026, it was publicly disclosed that the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) had opened a criminal investigation into Zaretskaya and two other suspects regarding the activities of Laava Tech. The EPPO suspects that the project was fraudulent and caused nearly €450,000 in direct damages to the EU. Additionally, Brussels demanded the return of over €2 million from the previously issued subsidy. Following the investigation, an Estonian court seized Zaretskaya's bank accounts and placed a ban on the disposal of her assets in Estonia up to the amount of €1.8 million.[5][14]

Recognition

Zaretskaya was included in a Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2020[1] and in an Innovators Under 35 list in 2022.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Tatsiana Zaretskaya". Forbes. 2020. Archived from the original on 2022-10-16. Retrieved 2022-10-29.
  2. ^ a b "Tatsiana Zaretskaya assigned as the United Transitional Cabinet Representative for Finance and Economy". Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. 2022-09-09. Archived from the original on 2022-10-17. Retrieved 2022-10-29.
  3. ^ a b "Tatsiana Zaretskaya assigned as the United Transitional Cabinet Representative for Finance and Economy". Belarus Abroad. 2022-09-09. Archived from the original on 2022-10-29. Retrieved 2022-10-29.
  4. ^ a b "Не выдержала давления. Татьяна Зарецкая объявила об уходе из Объединенного переходного кабинета" [She couldn't stand the pressure. Tatsiana Zaretskaya announced her resignation from the United Transitional Cabinet]. Belsat. 2022-11-02. Retrieved 2022-11-06.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  5. ^ a b c "Памятаеце Таццяну Зарэцкую, якая са скандалам звальнялася з Кабінета Ціханоўскай? У Эстоніі яе падазраюць у махлярстве" [Do you remember Tatsiana Zaretskaya, who resigned from Tsikhanouskaya's Cabinet with a scandal? She is suspected of fraud in Estonia]. Nasha Niva (in Belarusian). 2026-02-13. Retrieved 2026-02-22.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. ^ a b c d e f g "Паспяховая стартаперка ці баранэса Мюнхгаўзен? Як Таццяна Зарэцкая трапіла ў Аб'яднаны кабінет і чаму яна яго пакінула" [A successful startup entrepreneur or Baron Munchausen? How Tatsiana Zaretskaya got into the Transitional Cabinet and why she resigned]. Nasha Niva (in Belarusian). 2022-11-03. Retrieved 2022-11-13.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  7. ^ a b "Software – Tatsiana Zaretskaya". Innovators Under 35. 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-10-09. Retrieved 2022-10-29.
  8. ^ a b Ionita, Antoanela (2022-04-26). "Laava Tech founder, Tatsiana Zaretskaya: Indoor farming may be key to solving the global food crisis". The Recursive. Archived from the original on 2022-04-26. Retrieved 2022-10-29.
  9. ^ a b "Ціханоўская: Нашай памылкай было тое, як мы рэагавалі і камунікавалі падчас сітуацыі з Зарэцкай" [Tsikhanouskaya: Our mistake was how we reacted and communicated during the situation with Zaretskaya]. Nasha Niva (in Belarusian). 2022-11-05. Retrieved 2026-02-22.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ a b Ошуркевич, Татьяна (2022-11-03). "Мы попытались поговорить с Татьяной Зарецкой о ее бизнесе — в ответ получили угрозы судебного иска. Рассказываем подробности" [We tried to talk to Tatsiana Zaretskaya about her business and received threats of legal action in response. Here are the details]. Zerkalo.io (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2022-11-09. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  11. ^ "«Чырвоных сцяжкоў больш, чым на камуністычным мітынгу». Фінансавы аналітык Адаскевіч пра стартап Зарэцкай" ["More red flags than at a communist rally." Financial analyst Adaskevich on Zaretskaya's startup]. Nasha Niva (in Belarusian). 2022-11-04. Retrieved 2026-02-22.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ "Памятаеце «паспяховую мільянерку» Зарэцкую? Выглядае, што яе кампанія — усё" [Remember the "successful millionaire" Zaretskaya? It looks like her company is done]. Nasha Niva (in Belarusian). 2024-07-03. Retrieved 2026-02-22.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ^ "Таццяна Зарэцкая больш не эстонская стартаперка. Цяпер яна спрабуе стаць пасярэдніцай інвестараў у Саудаўскай Аравіі" [Tatsiana Zaretskaya is no longer an Estonian startup founder. Now she is trying to become an investor intermediary in Saudi Arabia]. Nasha Niva (in Belarusian). 2025-01-19. Retrieved 2026-02-22.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. ^ a b "А чым цяпер займаецца Зарэцкая? Яна пераехала з Эстоніі ў Арабскія Эміраты" [What is Zaretskaya doing now? She moved from Estonia to the Arab Emirates]. Nasha Niva (in Belarusian). 2026-02-14. Retrieved 2026-02-22.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatsiana_Zaretskaya