German Payment Processors Still a Haven for Scammers
Unauthorized payment processors based in Germany continue to be widely used by international fraud rings. Entities such as B2G, operated by Rainer Treuer and his associate Oleg Shvartsman from Russia, have helped funnel tens of millions of euros through scam operations involving figures like Gal Barak and Uwe Lenhoff—resulting in major financial losses for thousands of small investors.
Among the latest enforcement actions, the German regulator BaFin issued a Cease and Desist Order in October 2020 against Egramming GmbH, a Berlin-registered company accused of facilitating fraudulent schemes, including the crypto scam Capital Coin Exchange. That order has now been made final.
BaFin’s Findings: How Egramming Operated
According to BaFin’s decision, Egramming GmbH engaged in illegal financial services by:
-
Accepting funds from private individuals into its own corporate accounts
-
Transferring those funds abroad, mostly to foreign companies
-
Acting on behalf of entities linked to unlicensed online trading platforms, including capital-coinexchange.com
Company Profile:
|
Name |
Egramming GmbH |
|
Founded |
March 2020 |
|
Berlin, Germany |
|
|
Director |
Maykal Petrov, Bulgarian national |
|
Declared Activity |
IT services, programming, and marketing |
Despite its official registration, Egramming was offering illegal payment processing, a violation of German financial law.
Capital Coin Exchange: A Vanished Scam
The Capital Coin Exchange scheme operated under domains such as:
-
www.capital-coinexchange.com
-
www.capitalcoinx.com
Both sites are currently inactive, having likely vanished along with investors’ funds. The operation was fronted by Direct Coin Ltd, a UK-registered company. Artjoms Molotkovs, a Latvian national born in June 1984, was listed as both director and beneficial owner.
Warnings and Legal Action
The Capital Coin Exchange scam was publicly flagged by several watchdogs, including:
-
A formal warning from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
-
An investor alert from German legal firm Herfurtner Rechtsanwälte
Given the severity of its involvement, Egramming GmbH is considered a co-conspirator in these fraudulent activities. Under German law, this constitutes a criminal offense, which should prompt not only regulatory action by BaFin, but also criminal proceedings by law enforcement.
Regulatory enforcement is only the beginning. It’s time for German prosecutors to step in and hold fraud enablers accountable.