Introduction. The All-Union Association “Torgsin” operated in the USSR between 1930 and 1936. Its main sources of income included gold, silver, valuables, antiques received from the population, private currency transfers from abroad and trade with foreigners. All this constituted additional extra-budgetary revenues for the Soviet state and became possible due to the famine caused by the Soviet authorities. The Soviet state managed to deprive the population of valuables and currency for the needs of industrialization exactly under the conditions of the 1932-1933 famine. Purpose. The research aims to specify the littlestudied peculiarities of activities and income sources of Torgsin in the UkrSSR between 1932 and 1933. Results. The availability of currency values, such as gold, silver, platinum, diamonds and foreign currency, served as a pass to Torgsin shops. Bad harvests in the late 1920s – the early 1930s, as well as the grain procurement policy, collectivization and dispossession of the kulaks, caused the mass famine and forced the population to exchange the remaining family values for bread in Torgsin. There is every reason to believe that the procurement growth rate of national gold and other precious metals by Torgsin did not at all induce the Soviet authorities to overcome the food crisis and provide assistance to the starving population. The chosen strategy became a win-win situation. The artificial creation of a food deficit, which was compensated by the Soviet state with Torgsin’s abundance, enabled the Soviet authorities to “pump out” all currency values from the starving population. The famine rates were proportionate to Torgsin’s income growth. Conclusion. The Torgsin system, which existed in the early 1930s, saved thousands of human lives during times of severe famine. However, it only helped those who had gold and other precious things. Food products constituted more than 80% of the goods sold by Torgsin, about 60% of which was bread. Good intentions of Torgsin were actually cynical and mercantile interests of the Soviet state. Further research should study the documents of regional archive facilities, which store information about the activities of Torgsin’s local trading points during the specified period of time.