The Zurich prosecutor's office established that at least 46 million Swiss francs belonging to the Nigerian drug mafia were laundered through Swiss Remit, a Russian-linked "laundromat" operation in the country. According to VChK-OGPU and Rucriminal.info, at least 120 million euros in illicit funds from Russia were also laundered through Swiss Remit. The operation was based in an office owned by a firm belonging to Shamil Idrisov, the former deputy head of the Ulyanovsk Region’s representative office. A document has surfaced indicating that banker German Gorbuntsov may have been the beneficiary of Swiss Remit until January 2026.
Court documents from the prosecutor's office have revealed how the "laundromat" operated and how investigators uncovered it. Swiss Remit maintained several offices in Switzerland, including one in Geneva itself. They all shared a distinctive feature: two entrances. One was a main entrance for legitimate clients, and the other was a "back" entrance for "special" clients. These special clients included drug dealers belonging to the clan of Amadi Simon, a major Nigerian drug lord. Simon lived in Switzerland with his wife—who worked at the payment service's office—and was a beneficiary of Swiss Remit. Cocaine dealers would bring their proceeds directly to Swiss Remit offices via the "back entrance," from where the funds were transferred to Nigeria and other African countries. There, Simon invested the money in luxury hotels, nightclubs, office buildings, and other assets. Through cocaine dealers, the US DEA, Europol, and Swiss law enforcement agencies traced the trail to Swiss Remit; subsequently, the phones of Simon and his wife were wiretapped, and hidden cameras were installed in the payment service provider's offices. An operation was carried out in early summer, resulting in the arrest of Simon and his wife, as well as Pyotr Shcherbina (a Moldova native holding a French passport) and Russian national Sergey Salpanov (listed as the primary official owner of Swiss Remit), who were present at the Swiss Remit offices.
In Russia, Salpanov had served on the board of Anelik Ru Bank (a payment system operator); the bank was sanctioned by Ukraine in 2016 and subsequently liquidated in 2019. According to the Zurich prosecutor's office, over 46 million francs in drug mafia funds were laundered through Swiss Remit.
The story is still unfolding, and according to VChK-OGPU and Rucriminal.info, interesting "surprises" are to be expected. Our project’s data indicates that at least 120 million euros originating from Russia were also laundered through Swiss Remit. The payment service maintained a representative office in Moscow City where cash was collected, converted into cryptocurrency, and subsequently credited to client accounts in Switzerland and other European countries. Swiss Remit operated representative offices in several countries—some official, such as in Greece, and others unofficial, such as in Spain. The Spanish office was managed by Ukrainian national Vladimir Moshuk.
Although Salpanov was declared the primary beneficiary of Swiss Remit, a document surfaced revealing the existence of a beneficial ownership agreement valid from March 2022 through December 2025, under which the shareholder of Swiss Remit was Natalia Semchunkova—the wife of banker German Gorbuntsov. Under the agreement, Salpanov pledged shares to her as collateral for a large loan.
Additionally, Swiss Remit’s headquarters were located in premises owned by the firm Fonteluna SA. The ultimate beneficial owner of this firm was Shamil Idrisov. The lease for the villa where Salpanov resided in Switzerland was also held in Idrisov’s name. Idrisov was a major co-owner and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Povolzhsky Vzaimosvyazanny Bank (PV-Bank) and served as Deputy Chairman of the Ulyanovsk Region Government. He was questioned in connection with a criminal case involving embezzlement during the construction of the Federal High-Tech Center for Medical Radiology in Dimitrovgrad. Subsequently, he moved to Switzerland.
According to our project’s findings, Swiss Remit worked closely with top executives from a Swiss asset management company that had Latvian roots.
