The Bank of Lithuania has fined Pervesk UAB, a company linked to the troubled Bankera cryptocurrency project, €130,000 ($151,525) for serious violations of anti–money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing rules.
Following an inspection, regulators said Pervesk failed to properly assess risks when dealing with high-risk clients and foreign financial institutions, did not adapt monitoring scenarios to specific money-laundering typologies, and left gaps in retrospective checks and internal investigations. Staff responsible for AML duties were also found insufficiently trained on internal policies and procedures.
The regulator issued both a financial penalty and a formal warning, citing “significant shortcomings” in risk management, client identification procedures, and controls over distributors.
Pervesk head Darius Kulikauskas told 15min news outlet he had little to add beyond the company’s official statement, stressing that the inspection materials are classified as the Bank of Lithuania’s secret.
“Even if I wanted to, I cannot comment on very specific details,” he said. “What I can say in general is that the Bank of Lithuania does not determine whether a certain risk actually materialized … it assesses whether the risk could have been managed better. Due to shortcomings, our procedures could have been better. We acknowledge this, and that is why we are improving them. We have already carried out audits and practically resolved everything.”
Pervesk was one of the central companies in Bankera’s 2017–2018 initial coin offering (ICO), which raised over €100 million ($116.56 million) from more than 100,000 investors. Funds collected through Pervesk accounts were later transferred to Pacific Private Bank in Vanuatu, a lender secretly acquired by Bankera’s three founders. An OCCRP/15min investigation revealed those funds were used to issue loans financing villas on the French Riviera, prime real estate in Lithuania, and luxury properties in Vanuatu.
Lithuania’s central bank noted that while Pervesk has since taken steps to fix compliance gaps, including hiring external auditors, it remains under heightened supervision.
Authorities have been scrutinizing Bankera for years. As OCCRP previously reported, Lithuanian prosecutors launched a pretrial investigation into the €100 million ICO after journalists revealed how investor funds were diverted.
Despite the regulatory actions and investor losses, Bankera and its ecosystem companies remain active in Lithuania’s fintech sector, continuing to promote themselves as digital banking alternatives.
