Continent Pay, a/k/a ContintentPay, a high-risk payment processor, has come under the investigative lens of PayRate42 due to its purported connections with Gery Shalon, a notorious cybercriminal. It is alleged that Shalon controls Continent Pay through MARKET PROMO Sp. z o.o., a company based in Poland. A few days ago, a whistleblower request was also made on FinTelegram due to the high level of interest in this case.
Background on Gery Shalon
Gery Shalon, arrested in Israel in 2015 and later extradited to the U.S., faced charges in November 2015 for orchestrating extensive cyberattacks on U.S. financial institutions, brokerage firms, and a major news agency. These unprecedented attacks led to massive data breaches and significant financial losses. Following his confession and U.S. authorities’ seizure of over $400 million, Shalon returned to Israel in 2022/23. Since then, he has reportedly been involved in developing online betting operations within the OX Gaming group and is believed to control Continent Pay through MARKET PROMO Sp. z o.o., based in Warsaw, Poland.
Continent Pay’s Operations
Continent Pay reportedly facilitates transactions for illegal online betting sites, including Atlantis Slots, which operates unlawfully in Europe. These activities are raising substantial legal and compliance concerns, prompting calls for regulatory intervention.
Based on a review PayRate42 included Continent Pay in its Red Compliance list. Data from Similarweb shows that almost all these visitors are redirected from online betting sites. Atlantis Slots, operated by Pennytech Holding B.V. and licensed in Curaçao, has been identified as the top referrer of traffic to the Continent Pay website in the past 28 days.
Go to the Continent Pay profile on PayRate42.
Investigations revealed that customer deposits for Atlantis Slots are processed through Continent Pay using various methods, including debit/credit cards and Binance Pay.
Atlantis Slots operates illegally in Europe and other jurisdictions, as the Curaçao license does not permit services in EEA regions. Letovio Holding Ltd., based in Limassol, Cyprus, facilitates these transactions, raising significant legal and compliance issues. It appears that Letovio Holding is receiving illegally obtained funds from EEA players into an EU bank account.
Legal and Compliance Concerns
The ongoing investigation into Continent Pay and its alleged ties to Gery Shalon underscores the urgent need for rigorous regulatory oversight in the financial and online betting sectors. As authorities delve deeper into the operations and affiliations of Continent Pay, the potential implications for legal and compliance frameworks are profound. This scrutiny highlights the importance of transparency and accountability within high-risk payment processing and reinforces the necessity for international cooperation in combating financial crimes.
