By law enforcement decision, real estate in Lithuania belonging to a Liechtenstein fund associated with “Bankera” and personal property of one of the founders has been seized.
The Financial Crime Investigation Service (FNTT) 15min confirmed that reports of suspicions have been drawn up against three founders of the “Bankera” group companies’ initial coin offering (ICO) project – Mantas Mockevičius, Vytautas Karalevičius, and Justas Dobiliauskas.
According to FNTT, suspicions were drawn up “due to the embezzlement of foreign property of very high value, not less than 45 million euros – funds from the project carried out by the ‘Bankera’ group companies.”
“Summons have been sent to these individuals, and they are being invited for interrogations,” the FNTT response states.
The service also indicated that during this pre-trial investigation, several requests for legal assistance and European investigation orders were submitted.
Law enforcement took action after the 15min Investigations Department, together with the international investigative journalism network OCCRP, published a journalistic investigation.
You can read and view this investigation here: ‘Bankera’s poker: 15min journalistic investigation reveals where millions went’
How the money moved
According to the investigation data, in just six months during 2017–2018, the “Bankera” initial coin offering project attracted more than 100 million euros. The project developers announced that more than 100,000 people purchased the distributed “Banker” (BNK) token.
VIDEO: “Bankera’s poker: Who won the crypto millions?”
Investors were promised that their money would be used to create a new, licensed “blockchain era” bank in Europe. However, the value of the BNK token later dropped sharply, promised periodic payments to investors stopped, and the promises to create a bank licensed in the European Union remained unfulfilled.
Journalists found that a significant portion of the collected funds – more than 45 million euros – was transferred to the “Pacific Private Bank” operating in Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu, which the “Bankera” founders acquired in 2018, just before the end of the token distribution.
As revealed by a journalistic investigation based on leaked financial documents, “Pacific Private Bank” lent millions directly to three “Bankera” founders, often noting that the loans were for “personal needs.”
Journalists calculated that from May 2019 to May 2023, “Pacific Private Bank” lent M. Mockevičius a total of 5.4 million euros, and J. Dobiliauskas 3 million euros. Of these, 4.2 million euros in transfers were clearly marked as intended for “personal use.”
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V. Karalevičius was lent 5.2 million euros, which, according to statements, were intended for “investments.” Almost all these amounts were guaranteed by the trio’s companies “Finalify,” “Spectro Finance Systems,” and “Spectro Finance,” and the loan amounts were secured from accounts holding investors’ funds.
Later, part of these loans was used to purchase luxury real estate on the French Riviera and in Lithuania – apartments in Vilnius, Kaunas, and Neringa.
The three “Bankera” founders from Šiauliai – V. Karalevičius, M. Mockevičius, and J. Dobiliauskas – changed their residences and are currently residents of Monaco.
After the 15min and OCCRP investigation, the “Bankera” ICO project attracted law enforcement attention. FNTT started a pre-trial investigation last May, and in November of last year conducted searches in companies associated with “Bankera.”
After suspicions were drawn up, law enforcement also proceeded with asset seizures related to the “Bankera” founders.
Data from the Register Center shows that at the end of August, the General Prosecutor’s Office seized an apartment on Gediminas Avenue in Vilnius, a plot with buildings in Vilnius Old Town, and an apartment in the new residential quarter on Brastos Street in Kaunas, belonging to the Liechtenstein fund “Eternity Ventures Foundation” associated with “Bankera.”
It was this “Eternity Ventures” fund, whose founders were two of the three “Bankera” founders, that was used for real estate purchases in Lithuania. As documents analyzed during the investigation show, the fund received money from J. Dobiliauskas and M. Mockevičius, who in turn received it from “Pacific Private Bank.”
An apartment in Kaunas on Ašmenos 1st Street, personally owned by one of the “Bankera” co-founders, J. Dobiliauskas, was also seized. The businessman acquired it back in 2014 – well before the start of the “Bankera” project.
Neither V. Karalevičius nor M. Mockevičius have had personal real estate in Lithuania recently.
Journalists have so far been unable to obtain data confirming that law enforcement has seized real estate abroad belonging to the “Bankera” founders or companies associated with them. Law enforcement also does not currently provide more detailed information about the seized assets or other circumstances in this investigation.
Changes in “Bankera” companies
After the journalistic investigation published last year, a series of changes began in companies associated with “Bankera” – some company managers changed, and the Lithuanian-registered company UAB “Bankera” changed its name.
On July 3, after more than seven years, Darius Kulikauskas was removed from the position of head of the Lithuanian bank-licensed electronic money institution “Pervesk”. At the same time, he also stepped down from the leadership of other Lithuanian companies associated with “Bankera” – “Obolis” and “Internetinis intelektas.” Jonas Lukoševičius, a longtime employee of “Bankera” and “Pervesk,” was temporarily appointed to lead “Pervesk.”
Changes also took place in “Spectro Finance.” On July 1, Tadas Dapšys was removed from the position of manager, and later the company appointed Belinda Tabe, a Vanuatu citizen who publicly states she works as a risk assessment specialist at “Pacific Private Bank,” as the manager.
At the same time, a new structure appeared in Estonia – “Continuum Holding” was established in May and became the owner of “Spectro Finance,” registered in Estonia. Among the shareholders of this holding are T. Dapšys and Eglė Stašienė – business development manager of “Pervesk.” They each hold 40% of the shares. Other individuals associated with the “Bankera” ecosystem are also listed among the shareholders – Evaldas Krampas (10%), Giedrė Tamošauskienė, and Vakaris Neverauskas (5% each).
In August, the name of the Lithuanian-registered UAB “Bankera” was changed – the company became “BankingLab Technologies.” The company emphasized that this does not mean abandoning the “Bankera” brand or the bankera.com platform name – “Era Finance Limited,” operating in Malta and using this brand, continues its activities under the previous name.
Soon after, the head of “BankingLab Technologies” also changed. At the end of August, after T. Dapšys resigned, he was replaced by Antanas Aleksiejūnas, who already leads several other “BankingLab” group companies in Lithuania.
Despite recent months’ changes in the management of some companies, according to Register Center data, the ultimate beneficial owners of the main companies in the “Bankera” ecosystem continue to be all three “Bankera” co-founders – J. Dobiliauskas, V. Karalevičius, and M. Mockevičius.
