Kazakhstan: alleged fixer Ilyas Karimov, Pin-UP, and a reported $5 million to $10 million crypto outflow

An allegation making the rounds in Kazakhstan’s payment circles says Ilyas Karimov used bluff, AI-generated voice calls, and claims of security service connections to extract money from Pin-UP-linked and other clients. For PSPs and high-risk operators, the point is not the theatre; it is the combination of payment pressure, law-enforcement fear, and crypto rails.

1. According to the source text, Karimov worked with Amandaliyev Alihan, described as being in a server department and still helping Pin-UP avoid mirror-site blocking. Alihan was also presented as a local fixer with ties to the Astana office of the KNB (the National Security Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan) and as someone who could help people avoid AFM (the Financial Monitoring Agency) scrutiny.
2. The text says Marina Levkovich met Alihan in Astana in July last year near the Ritz Carlton. Karimov allegedly organized the meeting, and Levkovich transferred about $3 million in USDT as an advance for KNB leadership in order to resolve an AFM-related issue and protect TOO “BONAMI”. The source says the money never reached KNB leadership and was retained by Alihan.
3. Karimov is also described as repeatedly boasting about being friends with Dmitry Puunin and claiming he could solve any issue in Kazakhstan, initiate criminal cases through KNB and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, or close any case. He allegedly said AFM feared KNB and would not move against them. The source says Marina Levkovich actively backed up those claims.
4. Another name in the story is Rustam Iskindirov, co-founder of Prime Agency and Qubit IT Agency. The source says he helped by using AI to create fake voice messages and calls, so Karimov could show off alleged links to Sergey Lavrov and ambassadors. When money had to be extracted, the pair allegedly claimed they had information from KNB surveillance, could open or close ERDR (the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations) at any time, and had control over all media in Kazakhstan.
5. The text says one team working in payment services was hit after AFM pressure and later went to Karimov for help. They paid $5 million into a USDT wallet, but, according to the source, Puunin’s assistant took the money. It also says Karimov and Iskindirov had real connections in law-enforcement circles in Almaty region, Almaty, and Astana, which made the story sound credible even if, as the source puts it, the actual level of access was not what they claimed.

The source also claims Kazakhstan is going through a market reshuffle around ESU, with an official named Yessekeev described as highly interested in the process. It says he previously controlled the lottery market and now wants the payments market, and that nearly 250 people are in pre-trial detention, including those who moved money and those who did not.

One more detail, if taken at face value: the source says Karimov moved money to Germany through a crypto wallet with the help of his partner on 30-31 December 2025, amounting to around $5 million to $10 million allegedly taken from his clients.