Phoenix Payments Ltd d/b/a Paytah, registered in Malta and regulated by the MFSA, is currently at the center of regulatory and criminal investigations in several European jurisdictions. In addition, Paytah is facing claims from scam victims who made deposits to various scams through Paytah and its affiliates. The European Fund Recovery Initiative (EFRI) represented the interests of victims at an obscure Financial Ombudsman hearing in Malta. Franklin Cachia of CSB Group represented Paytah. Cachia is currently the company's contracted compliance officer.
The regulated Maltese high-risk payment processor Phoenix Payments Ltd d/b/a Paytah, has sued its regulator, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA). Paytah accuses MFSA of being judge, jury, and executioner. The payment processor took this unprecedented step after the Maltese regulator fined it EUR 32,400 and restricted the company's license. This is not a normal civil court case. Instead, Paytah brought the claim against MFSA at the Constitutional Courts level. This is a first in Malta. Paytah has also sued MFSA for damages.
The Italian Alpesh Patel has been appointed as a director of the MFSA-regulated Phoenix Payments Ltd, d/b/a Paytah. The regulator approved this appointment. One fails to understand how the MFSA and the FIAU have so far failed in clamping down Paytah. According to the former Chief Compliance Officer Daniela Pesci, the Maltese payment processor is being investigated by Interpol for money laundering issues. She filed public court documents against Paytah at Malta Courts show that she had her job terminated as soon as she flagged serious regulatory shortcomings.
Malta-based Phoenix Payments Limited d/b/a as Paytah has hit the headlines for the wrong reasons over the past months. Fintelegram extensively reported on the scam-facilitating activities of this high-risk payment processor and its refusal to accept responsibility for intentionally or grossly negligently supporting the scams. Furthermore, Paytah did not only not compensate the victims despite its legal obligations, but it also refuses to assist the victims in their fund recovery activities.
Paytah is operated by Phoenix Payments Ltd, a company registered in Malta and regulated by MFSA. As reported by FinTelegram, PayTah has facilitated vast broker scams, including LincolnFX, RoyalsFX, CodexFX between 2019 and 2020. Victims of these scams have provided the European Fund Recovery Initiative (EFRI) with the Power of Attorney to recover their funds. Via its Maltese lawyer EFRI has taken actions to recover the victims' funds from Paytah. Currently, the Maltese connection is chasing after the Paytah people.