iGaming Company SoftSwiss Accused of Running an Offshore Gambling Network

^{Pictured: Ivan Montik, CEO of SoftSwiss}

Belarus-founded iGaming company SoftSwiss may have acted not only as a software provider but also as the central element of an offshore online gambling and crypto-payments network, according to an investigation titled “The SoftSwiss Papers: Anatomy of a Shadow Empire – Part I”, cited by Curaçao Chronicle.

The investigation was prepared by forensic analyst João Mar of GAMRS LTD, a structure of the UK-based company Deal Me Out CIC, which works in the field of gambling-harm prevention. The analysis draws on more than a decade of corporate registries, court documents and international intellectual property records.

According to the report, SoftSwiss and affiliated entities built a model combining iGaming platform development, the management of online casino operators and payment infrastructure. Curaçao-registered companies Direx N.V., Dama N.V. and Hollycorn N.V., along with the Estonian payments provider CoinsPaid, are described as being linked to SoftSwiss and operating as a single economic group.

The document claims that this structure may have been used to conceal ultimate beneficial owners, and that its formation involved SoftSwiss CEO Ivan Montik.

The report also states that Direx N.V., originally registered in 2014 as SoftSwiss N.V., was later renamed to distance it from the parent brand, with related processes overseen by SoftSwiss Chief Commercial Officer Maksim Trofimovich.

Maksim Trofimovich, CCO of SoftSwiss

In the section on financial flows, the investigation alleges that CoinsPaid was used as an internal settlement hub, while Merkeleon — a company linked to SoftSwiss CFO Pavel Kashuba — was involved in converting betting revenues into crypto assets.

Citing whistleblower information, the report claims that these structures may have processed transactions connected to illegal online gambling, including in markets such as Australia and Germany.

The investigation also refers to a joint filing with the World Intellectual Property Organization in 2025, in which SoftSwiss, Hollycorn N.V., CoinsPaid and Pavel Kashuba were listed as belonging to a single group of companies. The network’s activities are said to have been organized through the jurisdictions of Curaçao, Cyprus, Estonia and the British Virgin Islands. The report further mentions links between SoftSwiss and offshore brands Megapari and Betwinner.