Statement from Papara following the appointment of a trustee by the SDIF
Turkey's leading fintech platform, Papara, has been shaken by an illegal betting investigation. 14 people, including the company's owner Ahmet Faruk Karslı, were detained, and the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (SDIF) was appointed as a trustee to the company. Following these developments, a statement was released on the company's social media account. Here are all the details of the investigation...
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Papara, one of Turkey's most widely used electronic money and payment service platforms, has been the subject of a large-scale operation as part of an illegal betting investigation conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.
COMPANY OWNER DETAINED
Within the framework of the investigation, a total of 14 people, including Papara's founder and owner Ahmet Faruk Karslı, were detained. The charges brought as part of the investigation include mediating illegal betting activities, establishing and being a member of an organization for the purpose of committing crimes, and laundering assets derived from crime.
According to reports from the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) and the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (TCMB) included in the investigation file, illegal betting and gambling transactions were carried out through 26,012 accounts opened via Papara. It was determined that a total of 12 billion 879 million TL in transactions were made through these accounts.
It was alleged that these transactions were linked to 102 different illegal betting and gambling sites, and that the proceeds of crime were laundered through 274 bank accounts and 16 crypto wallets.
TRUSTEE APPOINTED TO THE COMPANY
Following the operation, a total of 8 companies, including Papara Elektronik Para A.Ş. and its parent company PPR Holding, were seized. Due to the severity of the investigation, the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) was appointed as a trustee to the company.
As part of the investigation, assets belonging to the company and individuals worth approximately 5 billion TL in total were seized. The seized assets include 6 marine vessels, 74 land vehicles, and 8 luxury residences.
STATEMENT FROM PAPARA
Following the detentions and the appointment of the trustee, a statement was issued by Papara to inform its users. The statement made via their social media platform X account included the following:
"As Papara, we apologize for the disruptions in accessing our financial services.
As stated in the official announcement made by the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, daily limits will be applied to payment transactions for a temporary period. Technical improvements are ongoing, and our users will be informed as soon as possible.
Within the scope of Article 22 of Law No. 6493, the funds of payment service users in payment and electronic money institutions are under protection in safeguard accounts held at banks. Our institution's safeguard funds in banks have been checked and no issues have been encountered. We thank you for your understanding and support, and we would like you to know that we are working to ensure you can access all our services fully as soon as possible."
