Tag: Rudolf Booker

The newly published Payvision chats could become the most damaging documentary evidence yet in Europe’s long-running broker scam scandal. According to EFRI and the cited criminal case files, Payvision did not merely process transactions for Lenhoff and Barak-linked fraud networks — it allegedly helped them solve payment problems, reroute settlements, and survive banking disruption, all while generating lucrative fee income.

It is one of the largest European cybercrime cases, with dozens of indictments and victim lawsuits. In its center - the Dutch payment facilitator Payvision. Fresh excerpts from criminal files obtained by FinTelegram put Payvision’s then-CEO Rudolf Booker uncomfortably close to the Lenhoff–Barak scam machine. These are not the fingerprints of a “neutral payment processor,” but the voice of an anxious, hands-on gatekeeper and facilitator.

StablR Ltd, a Malta-regulated Electronic Money Institution (EMI), operates within a highly challenging business environment for small stablecoin issuers. With stablecoin issuance stagnating at approximately €11 million for both EUR and USD tokens, the company faces fundamental structural challenges that raise serious questions about its long-term viability and the broader sustainability of small-scale stablecoin operations.

Roman Storm was found guilty only of running an unlicensed money-service business (MSB) avoiding the far heavier money-laundering and sanctions charges. Meanwhile, in the Netherlands, fellow Tornado Cash coder Alexey Pertsev is already serving 64 months for money-laundering. Yet the Dutch executives of high-risk processor Payvision knowingly washed hundreds of millions for cyber-crime kingpins—escaped with nothing more than modest administrative fines.

Ralph Hamers once graced conference stages as Europe’s “digital banking messiah.” Today, he is better known for a €360 m* Payvision fiasco, a record €775 m money-laundering fine at ING, an aborted $1.4 bn Wealthfront buyout, and an unceremonious exit from UBS as the Credit Suisse rescue loomed.

StablR Ltd (Malta, C 104007) positions itself as a MiCA-ready euro-stablecoin issuer. Official filings show a simple Dutch holding chain, but deeper registry work and legacy links to Payvision’s cyber-crime scandal raise doubts about the project’s true beneficial owners (UBOs). While no hard evidence yet ties Payvision founder Rudolf Booker (or other ex-shareholders) directly to StablR, multiple red flags—including addresses previously used by Booker-controlled entities and a board dominated by former Payvision managers—demand regulatory scrutiny.

In April 2025, Mohamad Shaker — the head of the largest boiler room in German cybercriminal Uwe Lenhoff’s vast cybercrime empire — was sentenced to 8 years in prison by a German court. Shaker's conviction marks another milestone in dismantling one of Europe’s largest cybercrime organizations. Yet, while some lieutenants have faced justice, the key facilitators — including executives of Payvision and the Amsterdam-based money laundering network — remain untouched.

In a case that raises fundamental questions about legal ethics and professional accountability, the Dutch law firm BarentsKrans has come under fire for abandoning the European Fund Recovery Initiative (EFRI) and over 600 financial fraud victims just days before a critical court deadline. EFRI accuses the law firm of concealment, conflict of interest, and unethical conduct—all while pocketing tens of thousands of euros meant for justice. This is not just a legal misstep. It’s a betrayal.

The Payvision scandal is one of the most shocking cases of corporate complicity in global cybercrime. A Dutch payment processor, Payvision, actively facilitated fraud networks, laundering and distributing stolen funds for years. Despite overwhelming evidence, Dutch authorities refuse to hold those responsible accountable and continue to withhold crucial investigative reports that could help victims recover their stolen money.

Tether, the world’s leading stablecoin issuer, has shocked the crypto and financial world by investing in StablR, an EU stablecoin issuer run by former Payvision COO Gijs op de Weegh. This move raises serious questions about Tether’s due diligence processes and ethical commitments, as StablR’s leadership is tied to one of Europe’s most notorious financial scandals involving cybercrime facilitation. Crypto investors and stablecoin users should proceed with caution.

JPMorgan Chase, a financial powerhouse in the U.S., and ING Group, a dominant banking institution in the Netherlands, have both ventured into the acquisition of FinTech companies to expand their digital capabilities. However, these acquisitions' strategies and subsequent management have diverged significantly, reflecting differences in corporate governance, regulatory environments, and responses to crises. Here is our comparative analysis.

In the rapidly evolving landscape of cryptocurrency regulation, the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCAR) emphasizes the need for maximum transparency, particularly for stablecoin issuers. The former Payvision founder and COO, Gijs op de Weegh, founder and CEO of the new stablecoin issuer StablR, recently presented a piece of partially accurate biographical information that can mislead potential investors.