Legal Threats and Intimidation Tactics
As legal claims against Payvision, a former ING subsidiary, began to surface from scam victims, the response from the company and its founder, Rudolf Booker, took a troubling turn. Instead of addressing the claims transparently, Booker and Payvision launched a wave of legal intimidation and defamatory tactics aimed at discrediting the European Fund Recovery Initiative (EFRI) and its founder, Elfriede Sixt. Their goal appears to be to undermine victims’ confidence in EFRI and, in doing so, retraumatize those already harmed by the fraud.
The campaign reached a new level when Booker discovered Sixt was scheduled to speak at the Financial Economic Crime event in Brussels. In a bid to silence her, he hired a Belgian law firm to issue threatening and defamatory messages to the event’s organizers and speakers.
Payvision’s Role in Facilitating Fraud
In 2018, Scam-Or Project exposed significant documentation detailing fraudulent schemes orchestrated by Israeli scammer Gal Barak (a.k.a. “The Wolf of Sofia”), his wife Marina Barak, and associates Vladislav Smirnov, Gery Shalon, and Uwe Lenhoff. Within this framework, Payvision’s role emerged as a key facilitator.
Founded by Rudolf Booker in 2000 and acquired by ING in early 2018, Payvision processed credit and debit card payments for a range of binary options and forex scams. These operations targeted thousands of unsuspecting retail investors across Europe.
Notable Connections:
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Uwe Lenhoff and Gal Barak were among Payvision’s clients until their arrests in early 2019.
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Payvision transferred millions of euros to their scam operations.
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Lenhoff died in prison in 2020 under unclear circumstances.
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Barak was sentenced later that year to several years in prison and over €4 million in restitution.
Law enforcement found communications showing Booker and Lenhoff coordinated via email and WhatsApp, even vacationing together in Austria. Evidence from criminal case files indicates Booker was fully aware of the fraudulent nature of Lenhoff and Barak’s businesses and actively supported their operations.
Regulatory Investigations and Resignations
EFRI, representing around 300 victims of Barak and Lenhoff, called on authorities in 2019 to investigate Payvision. Their efforts led to action:
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Early 2020: De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) initiated an investigation.
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April 2020: Booker and co-founders Cheng Liem Li and Gijs op de Weegh resigned.
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Later in 2020: ING wrote off €200 million in goodwill from its Payvision acquisition.
The FinCEN Files Revelation
In autumn 2020, the FinCEN leak revealed that Payvision had been flagged by U.S. authorities for suspicious activities as early as 2013. Reports from major U.S. banks noted concerns about Payvision splitting large transactions without clear justification. Employees from Deutsche Bank and Bank of New York Mellon also raised red flags.
In response to media scrutiny, ING acknowledged that Payvision’s risk profile didn’t align with its standards. By September 2021, ING confirmed it would shut down Payvision following a McKinsey review.
Despite selling some high-risk accounts back to the original founders for a symbolic price, neither ING nor Payvision have offered any compensation to the victims represented by EFRI.
Voices of the Victims
EFRI represents over 300 individuals who lost life savings to scams run through Payvision’s acquiring services. Funds were deposited via Payvision-managed accounts at ING and Deutsche Bank. The organization relies on official criminal files from Austrian and German investigations to substantiate its claims.
EFRI is also assisting victims in pursuing civil action to recover their losses.
Intimidation of EFRI and Elfriede Sixt
Rather than take accountability, Payvision and Booker have launched campaigns to discredit Elfriede Sixt and EFRI. These efforts include spreading false claims and initiating lawsuits.
In late 2021, Booker sued an Austrian company where Sixt chairs the supervisory board, demanding an injunction for alleged defamation. The court rejected the injunction, and by April 2022, Booker dropped the case and covered the legal costs.
When he discovered Sixt would speak at the Financial Economic Crime conference, he hired the law firm elegis (Huybrechts, Engels, Craen & Vennoten) (www.elegis.be) to pressure organizers to cancel her appearance.
Booker’s legal team falsely accused Sixt of defamation to suppress her testimony on Payvision’s role in enabling financial fraud. Booker is seemingly using wealth gained from these schemes to intimidate victims and advocates.
EFRI’s Response and Continued Fight
“Booker behaves like Lenhoff—using money and threats to silence us,” said Elfriede Sixt. “But we will continue to speak out and support victims.”
EFRI has now instructed its legal team to file criminal complaints against Booker and his lawyers for defamation and intimidation.
What’s Next?
This legal battle is far from over. With further indictments against former Payvision clients expected in Germany, Austria, and beyond, the full scope of the Payvision scandal will be brought before courts.
Stay informed as justice unfolds.