31.10.2025 02:11
In the investigation conducted on the accusation of illegal betting, Papara, which was appointed a trustee in May, received bad news from the Central Bank as well. The Central Bank revoked Papara's operating license.
```html
The Central Bank revoked the license granted to Papara as an electronic money institution on April 21, 2016.
CB REVOKED PAPARA'S OPERATION LICENSE
The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) revoked the operating license of Papara Electronic Money Inc. The decision was published in the Official Gazette. According to the decision, the license granted to Papara as an electronic money institution on April 21, 2016, was revoked based on the decision of the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency.
The decision stated that the revocation was made in accordance with the relevant articles of Law No. 6493 on Payment and Securities Settlement Systems, Payment Services, and Electronic Money Institutions.
INVESTIGATION INTO "ILLEGAL BETTING" ON PAPARA
Meanwhile, the investigation conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the allegation that Papara Electronic Money Inc. facilitated illegal betting money traffic and that illegal betting organizations carried out money transfers through Papara has been completed.
INDICTMENT AGAINST 25 SUSPECTS
In the indictment prepared in recent weeks, the Sports Toto Organization, as the "victim of the crime," included 25 individuals, including Papara's Chairman Ahmed Faruk Karslı, as "suspects," and 21 companies as "jointly liable."
The indictment stated that a significant portion of the accounts opened at Papara Electronic Money and Payment Institution was used in illegal betting sites, and that there were indications in open-source investigations that these sites belonged to individuals known as betting barons, such as Veysel Ş, Derkan B, and Anıl U. It was noted that despite Papara's area of activity being payment services, the high volume of bank transfer transactions drew attention.
MONEY LAUNDERING SUSPICION
The indictment indicated that Papara was in a secret agreement process with illegal betting organizations, and the report sent by MASAK showed that the company's owner, Ahmed Faruk Karslı, was seen making money transfers abroad, consolidating his companies under the newly established "PPR Holding Inc." to gain a commercial appearance, and that he was legitimizing criminal income through transactions at Papara Electronic Money Inc., which strengthened the suspicion of money laundering.
In the statement of the confidential witness codenamed "Ladin," it was reported that most of the financial transactions of the betting sites integrated with Papara were conducted by creating a panel. The indictment emphasized that communications related to the panel were found on the phone of suspect Murat Arslan, who was involved in the establishment of Papara and is a partner in the company, and that the evidence corroborated the statements of the confidential witness.
The indictment noted that in the evaluations regarding Karslı, the owner of Papara, it was stated that he was the leader of the organization and that the suspect did not share the password of his mobile phone with law enforcement.
CENTRAL BANK REPORT: TRANSACTION VOLUME 12 BILLION TL
The indictment stated that the employees of the company acted in accordance with Karslı's instructions, and according to the Central Bank's audit report, between 2021-2023, the number of e-money accounts closed due to illegal betting activities was 21,088, which corresponded to 94.4% of the accounts closed in the sector. It was also noted that approximately 26,012 accounts were used in illegal betting sites during this period.
The indictment detailed that these accounts had a transaction volume of approximately 12 billion lira during the relevant dates, that the accounts were used in approximately 102 different illegal betting sites, and that the funds were sent from Papara accounts to 274 different bank accounts, and from there to 5 different identifiable cryptocurrency wallet addresses.
The indictment stated that the money transfers to Karslı's wife, mother, and siblings between 2020-2025 were found to be noteworthy, with a total amount of 120 million lira shared.
REQUESTS FOR PUNISHMENT
The indictment requested that the organization leader Ahmed Faruk Karslı and the organization executives, suspects İlker Diker, Taylan Özgür Kiraz, Emre Kenci, Cenab Doğru, and Cengiz Sevim be sentenced to imprisonment for 13 to 28 years for "establishing an organization for the purpose of committing a crime," "laundering assets derived from crime," "violating Law No. 5326 on Misdemeanors," and "violating the Law on Betting and Gambling in Football and Other Sports Competitions."
It was requested that the other 19 suspects be sentenced to varying terms of imprisonment from 5 to 23 years for "being a member of an organization established for the purpose of committing a crime," "laundering assets derived from crime," and "violating the Law on Betting and Gambling in Football and Other Sports Competitions." The indictment was sent to the Istanbul Criminal Court for evaluation.
```