In a sensationall report Germany’s public broadcaster ARD has publicly linked fintech self-promoter Michael Gastauer to a major law-enforcement operation in Bavaria and to prosecutorial inquiries reportedly coordinated out of Frankfurt. A raid is not a conviction—but in compliance terms it’s a loud signal: when “global bank” claims collide with licensing and AML questions, the perimeter is no longer theoretical.

Key Facts

• ARD aired a segment (“Ein Finanzunternehmer und eine Razzia in Bayern”) tying Gastauer and his Black Banx scheme to a large-scale search/raid in Bavaria and reported prosecutorial scrutiny.
• Black Banx publicly claimed a ~92 million client base (period-end) in its own Q3/2025 results—numbers that, if true, would place it above multiple major European fintechs combined.
• The U.S. SEC obtained a final judgment against Gastauer in SEC v. Knox et al. ordering him to pay over $17 million, tied to an alleged microcap scheme involving Roger Knox and entities the SEC said Gastauer controlled.
• In the QuadrigaCX insolvency/bankruptcy record, court materials reference accounts with “WB21 (n/k/a Black BanX)” and disputed amounts said to be held on behalf of Quadriga.

Download the Black Banx Q3 Report here.

Court & Docket

• United States: SEC v. Knox et al., Civil Action No. 1:18-cv-12058 (D. Mass.) — final judgment against Michael Gastauer (default).
• Germany (reported): Prosecutorial inquiries referenced by ARD Kontraste; no clearly published case file details were available in open releases at the time of writing (per broadcaster reporting and secondary coverage).
• Canada: QuadrigaCX proceedings — filings reference “WB21 (n/k/a Black BanX)” in the context of payment-processor funds disputes.

Evidence Box (what we can point to)

• Black Banx’s own published “Q3 2025 results,” claiming ~92m clients.
• ARD Kontraste (as summarized/echoed by an interviewed AML expert and secondary reporting).
• SEC litigation release confirming >$17m judgment against Gastauer.
• QuadrigaCX court record excerpt mentioning “WB21 (n/k/a Black BanX)” and disputed balances.

Short Analysis

The compliance problem isn’t the existence of bold marketing—it’s the gap between scale-claims and verifiability. Black Banx publicly markets a client count (~92m) that would dwarf Wise (15.6m active customers in FY2025) and exceed Revolut’s 50m milestone—and that mismatch is exactly why ARD’s experts reportedly concluded “the figures don’t add up.”

Layer in the SEC’s documented enforcement outcome and the appearance of WB21/Black Banx in Quadriga-related court materials, and the pattern that worries gatekeepers becomes familiar: cross-border rails + opaque structure + extraordinary metrics. Whether German prosecutors ultimately bring charges is an open question—but the raid narrative alone raises the governance question regulators and counterparties hate: who validated licensing scope, AML controls, and the underlying operating reality—before the hype?

Confidence Grades

• Confirmed: SEC judgment (> $17m) in SEC v. Knox et al.
• Corroborated: Black Banx’s 92m-client claim (issuer-made statement)
• Indicated: Bavaria raid + Frankfurt-linked prosecutorial scrutiny (reported by ARD / secondary coverage; limited official disclosure located)

Call for Information

Do you have regulator correspondence, licensing claims, banking/payment partners, onboarding/KYC flows, or internal documents linked to WB21 / Black Banx / Michael Gastauer? Submit securely via Whistle42.com. Confidential sources help us distinguish marketing theatre from operational facts—and identify the gatekeepers.