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German prosecutors have charged 18 people in a €300 million card fraud scheme and are now investigating whether fugitive former Wirecard executive Jan Marsalek helped run it, a link that could reopen scrutiny of Germany’s payment oversight just as MiCA-regulated crypto firms fall under the same supervisory umbrella.
The charges, announced following a years-long investigation known as Operation Chargeback, stem from an alleged scheme that operated between 2016 and 2021 and relied on fraudulent recurring subscription payments processed through Germany’s financial system.
The investigation was coordinated by the General Public Prosecutor’s Office in Koblenz, working alongside Europol, Eurojust, and U.S. federal authorities.
The payment fraud case centers on what German prosecutors described as a sophisticated criminal operation that infiltrated legitimate payment infrastructure while remaining largely undetected for years.
According to investigators, three organized criminal networks allegedly created millions of fraudulent recurring payment transactions linked to questionable online subscription services. The operation reportedly generated fake charges across approximately 19 million fabricated customer accounts, ultimately impacting about 4.3 million credit card holders in 193 countries.
Authorities allege that the networks exploited weaknesses within Germany’s regulated payments industry to process the fraudulent transactions at scale. The operation reportedly resulted in confirmed financial losses exceeding €300 million, while investigators estimate that an additional €750 million was targeted for theft or laundering through the same infrastructure.
The investigation extended well beyond Germany’s borders. Prosecutors coordinated with law enforcement agencies in multiple jurisdictions, filing more than 90 mutual legal assistance requests involving 30 countries. U.S. prosecutors from the Southern District of New York and the Central District of California also assisted in the international investigation.
The coordinated enforcement action resulted in the seizure of assets worth more than €35 million across Germany and Luxembourg, marking one of the largest recoveries linked to a European financial crime investigation of this scale.
A key aspect of the payment fraud case is the alleged involvement of insiders working within licensed payment service providers.
According to prosecutors, five executives and compliance officers from four German payment service providers were arrested during the investigation. Authorities also identified six former employees of the same companies as suspects.
Investigators believe these individuals allegedly abused their positions to facilitate and conceal fraudulent transactions, allowing the criminal networks to process payments through legitimate financial channels while avoiding regulatory scrutiny.
German prosecutors described the alleged operation as a “shadow financial system” built within Germany’s regulated payment infrastructure.
Prosecutors further stated that the criminal groups exploited compliance weaknesses that were “broken, ignored, or actively subverted by insiders.” — General Public Prosecutor’s Office in Koblenz.
That assessment suggests investigators believe the scheme extended beyond external cybercriminals and relied on internal cooperation from individuals with access to sensitive payment systems.
The payment fraud case illustrates how insider participation can significantly increase the scale and duration of financial crime by circumventing compliance procedures that are designed to protect consumers and financial institutions.
The latest payment fraud case has also revived attention on Germany’s financial oversight following the collapse of Wirecard in 2020.
Wirecard, once regarded as one of Europe’s leading financial technology companies, collapsed after disclosing that €1.9 billion supposedly held in trust accounts was missing. The scandal triggered sweeping criticism of Germany’s financial regulators and remains one of Europe’s largest corporate fraud cases.
Investigators are now examining potential connections between Operation Chargeback and Jan Marsalek, the former Wirecard executive who disappeared shortly before the company’s collapse and remains one of Europe’s most wanted fugitives.
While prosecutors have not announced any formal charges against Marsalek in relation to this payment fraud case, they confirmed that inquiries into possible links remain ongoing.
Authorities also emphasized that the alleged criminal networks exploited vulnerabilities within Germany’s payment infrastructure rather than isolated technical failures.
The investigation continues as prosecutors seek to determine whether any broader institutional failures enabled the fraudulent activity to persist over several years.
The scale of the payment fraud case has prompted renewed scrutiny of payment service providers operating across Europe.
With more than €300 million in confirmed losses and hundreds of millions of euros in additional attempted fraudulent transactions, the investigation highlights the financial risks posed by organized payment crime even within highly regulated markets.
The payment fraud case could also influence future regulatory oversight of payment companies operating under European financial frameworks, particularly if investigators establish stronger links between Operation Chargeback and the wider Wirecard network.
Authorities say international cooperation was essential to advancing the investigation, reflecting the increasingly cross-border nature of financial crime.
The General Public Prosecutor’s Office in Koblenz coordinated the investigation alongside Europol, Eurojust, and U.S. federal prosecutors, demonstrating the importance of multinational collaboration when pursuing complex financial crime networks.
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