Bankera founders tied to ICO fund misuse, luxury purchases

The founders of Bankera, a Lithuanian cryptocurrency fintech company, have been hammered with serious accusations over the misappropriation of funds raised during the 2018 initial coin offering (ICO) following a recent investigation.

According to a report by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), nearly half of the €100 million ($114 million) raised was funneled into the secret acquisition of Pacific Private Bank, a small financial institution based in Vanuatu.

With control of the bank, the founders—Vytautas Karalevičius, Justas Dobiliauskas, and Mantas Mockevičius—allegedly gained unchecked access to the ICO funds. They reportedly approved large, unsecured loans to companies they covertly owned or controlled.

Instead of supporting Bankera’s blockchain banking ventures, these funds were allegedly squandered on luxury real estate and high-end investments.

Founders fuel controversy with extravagant purchases

Leaked internal documents and bank statements obtained by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) reveal the troubling path of how Bankera’s founders used the €100 million raised during their ICO—an offering of so-called “utility tokens” later alleged to be securities.

Most of the funds were secretly funneled into Pacific Private Bank in Vanuatu, a financial institution they quietly acquired. From there, millions of euros were loaned to companies they owned and deposited into their bank accounts.

The cash was laundered through expensive real estate and luxury amenities in several countries.

Among the more significant buys was a €2.5 million luxury villa on the French Riviera, according to OCCRP research. The property, near the exclusive French Riviera resort of Saint-Tropez, boasts a private pool, sea views, and contemporary design — a clear hangout for the high-end elite.

In their home country, Lithuania, the founders allegedly bought several luxury apartments and commercial properties using shell companies. One such building in Vilnius, valued at over €1 million, was renovated and leased out to tech startups and boutique retailers. However, the revenue it generated appeared to benefit the founders privately rather than being reinvested to support Bankera’s token holders.

The investigation also uncovered loans linked to the purchase of a mansion in Switzerland and a significant investment in a luxury real estate development in the United Arab Emirates—highlighting the global scale of the founders’ spending. Additional funds were reportedly used to acquire a fleet of high-performance sports cars registered under affiliated companies.

Even though these purchases are widely documented, attorneys for Vytautas Karalevičius, Justas Dobiliauskas, and Mantas Mockevičius have fought it. They maintain that all financial activities were conducted lawfully and in support of developing the Bankera ecosystem. However, they made no efforts to clear the air or rebut the individual transactions and property deals featured in the OCCRP report.

The lack of additional detail provided in response has only fueled skepticism from ICO investors, who believe that the extravagant purchases directly violate the project’s original purpose: to create a decentralized, universally accessible financial system that meets the needs of the blockchain era.

Investors express frustration over broken promises

Bankera had marketed itself as a “bank for the blockchain era,” pitching a full suite of services and weekly payments to investors who owned BNK tokens. But investors say these payments dwindled greatly over the years, with the revenue-sharing program terminating completely in 2022. 

Additionally, Bankera’s pledge to secure a European Union banking license never materialized. Today, the fully diluted value of BNK tokens stands at approximately $975,710—comparable to the 912,430 to 3,080,000 tokens issued during the ICO.

Despite setbacks, Bankera continues to pursue projects in the crypto banking space and maintains an active presence on platforms like LinkedIn.

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