FSB detains 24 people over deposit processing for 14 online casinos in Russia

The FSB has detained 24 people in a case tied to deposit processing for 14 online casinos, including Pin-Up/Pinco, FreshCasino, Leon, MelBet, MostBet, PlayFortuna, Punch, RioBet, Shangrilla, WhyCasino, lwin, Azino, WinWin, and 888Casino. For PSPs and acquiring teams, the important part is not the headline number but the structure: this was a payment-processing operation allegedly built to support multiple gambling brands at scale, with thousands of transactions a day.

1. According to the report, the group organized deposit acceptance for 14 online casinos and handled thousands of transactions daily in support of those gaming platforms. In other words, this was not a single-brand merchant setup; it was a payment flow serving a portfolio of operators.
2. Two criminal cases were opened: one for organizing a criminal community and another for illegal money circulation. The leaders and the most active members were placed in custody.
3. Eight more defendants have been put on a wanted list. Searches were carried out at the defendants’ home addresses and workplaces, with cash and cars seized and property frozen.

For high-risk payment teams, the useful signal here is simple: when law enforcement frames deposit acceptance as organized infrastructure rather than isolated fraud, the exposure moves from merchant monitoring into criminal liability, asset seizure, and staff detention. That is the sort of event that tends to get the compliance department’s full attention very quickly.