The illegal broker schemes operated by Gal Barak and his E&G Bulgaria stole more than EUR 100,000,000 from retail investors worldwide. Many retail clients of those broker schemes such as SafeMarkets, XTraderFX, OptionStarsGlobal or Golden Markets have lost all their savings. Others have worked with bank loans or with their pension plans. The broker sites are now closed but Gal Barak, Marina Andreeva, and their lieutenants still live a life of luxury. Gal Barak, for example, drives a Porsche Panamera 4S and wears Gucci. He is currently allegedly under house arrest in Sofia and awaits extradition to Austria.
No Segregated Accounts But Luxury Lifestyle
According to legal regulations, customer funds should actually be kept in separate (segregated) accounts and administered in trust by the operators. Only customers should be able to dispose of this money. In fact, a significant amount of money was spent by Gal Barak and his CFO Marina Andreeva on financing the boiler rooms and aggressive online marketing campaigns to acquire new victims. The rest of the money – that is many millions of euros or dollars – landed after money laundering via offshore companies on the private accounts of perpetrators Gal Barak, Marina Andreeva, Kfir Levy, Itzik Gellet and their friends.
According to legal requirements, customer funds are to be kept in separate (segregated) accounts. The operators ought to have trustees for their respective clients and provide respective reports to the supervising authorities. Only customers should be able to dispose of this money. In fact, a significant amount of money was spent by Gal Barak and his CFO Marina Andreeva on financing the illegal boiler rooms (client conversion and retention) and aggressive online marketing campaigns to acquire new victims and fresh funds. The rest of the money – that is many millions of euros or dollars – landed after money laundering via offshore companies on the private bank accounts of operators.
FinTelegram has been provided documents and affidavits that in the second half of 2018 alone more than EUR 50,000,000 was stolen from clients. The table below provides just a tiny snapshot of money transferred to bank accounts of Gal Barak and friends in 2017 and 2018.
| Receiving Shell Company | Beneficial Owner | Amount EUR |
| GM Globe | Gal Barak | 1,070,000 |
| Wave Market | Gal Barak | 1,485,000 |
| Seagulf | Gal Barak | 2,789,000 |
| Bright Ideas | Gal Barak | 5,532,000 |
| Online Prospect* | Gal Barak | 8,786,000 |
| Dynamic Solutions | Gal Barak | 860,000 |
| Cash Witdrawal | Gal Barak | 120,000 |
| Marina Andreeva | Marina Andreeva | 725,000 |
| Marina Andreeva | Marina Andreeva | 725,000 |
| Itzik Gellet Solutions | Itzik Gellet | 1,274,000 |
| Kfir Levy | Kfir Levy | 214,000 |
| Marketing & Payments Consulting | Amit Hulin | 140,000 |
| GRB Media | Amit Hulin | 100,000 |
(*)Money that goes to fund other Gal Barak’s business as Casino online (UniqueCasino.com / UltraPartners) |
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In many cases, the incoming money from clients (victims) was immediately transferred to the private bank accounts of the perpetrators or withdrawn in cash. Below are given just two transactions around GPay Ltd, the company that officially owned and operated illegal broker schemes such as XTraderFX.
Another GPay bank statements with transactions regarding Gal Barak and Marina Andreeva from November 2018:
All the money laundering around the illegal broker schemes of E&G Bulgaria was done via the Bulgarian Investbank. The Bulgarian bank is globally known for its relaxed Anti-Money-Laundering (AML) and Know-Your-Customers (KYC) procedures and for being a global money-laundering hub.
Before the authorities and courts, Gal Barak denies being the beneficial owner or operator of these illegal platforms. We have not only the bank records proving that Gal Barak and his partner Marina Andreeva were the ultimate beneficial owners and operators, but also company documents that prove this. Furthermore, we also have the appropriate written communication, which proves that the two XtraderFX, SafeMarkets, Golden Markets, and the many other illegal schemes have operated.
