The Venezuelan businessman, Leonardo Rafael Montbrun Álvarez, is facing charges in the United States for money laundering, bank fraud, cyber crimes, as well as for materially supporting the Tren de Aragua —a foreign terrorist organization— and has also been accused in Spain of fraud and money laundering.
Although the complaint does not reference the Tren de Aragua, Salvador Pimentel Roja has accused the financial platform Shasta Technologies and the Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC) of operating illegally to facilitate money laundering and committing various scams through international transfers without the necessary banking supervision.
The complaint specifies that the executives, Álex Sicart, Leonardo Rafael Montbrun Álvarez, and Daniel Paloma —developers of the Shasta application— lead a structure that allegedly deceived savers in Venezuela and Europe under the guise of a legitimate financial technology entity.
The Complaint Before the Spanish Prosecutor’s Office
Without mentions of the Tren de Aragua, on January 11, 2022, Salvador Jesús Pimentel Roja lodged a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office in Spain against the company Shasta Technologies S.L., its executives, and the Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC) of Venezuela for the alleged commission of serious economic crimes, which include fraud, money laundering, and deceiving customers.
The complaint accuses Shasta Technologies S.L. —marketed as an innovative fintech application for international payments— of systematically operating outside of the banking regulations of Spain and Venezuela. It states that the platform ostensibly served as a vehicle for transferring funds without compliance checks, facilitating corruption and money laundering while appearing to have a strategic alliance with established banking institutions. This situation culminated in widespread claims for lost funds and the arrest of one of its key developers.
The individuals involved in this scheme are: Key entities and actors
ActorRole / descriptionSalvador Jesús Pimentel RojaComplainant and affected party.Shasta Technologies S.L.Spanish company registered in Barcelona (CIF# B67394254), developer of the Shasta application.Leonardo Montbrun ÁlvarezExecutive at Shasta, identified as a fundamental figure in the scheme.Álex SicartDeveloper of Shasta; currently facing charges in Venezuela and reportedly detained in Caracas.Daniel PalomaDeveloper and executive of Shasta linked to operations.Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC)Venezuelan banking institution that acted as a “collaborator” and regular channel for the application’s operations.Easy Payment y Finance EP SA / Pecunia CardsEntities with licenses in Spain used by Shasta to simulate operational legality.
Operational and Regulatory Irregularities
The complaint asserts that Shasta was specifically designed to “evade banking controls.” Although marketed as a tool for financial inclusion and dollarization, its operation was based on a lack of proper licenses.
Absence of Direct Licenses
Shasta did not appear in the registry of entities of the Bank of Spain. To operate, it entered into agreements with entities that did possess licenses — Easy Payment and Pecunia Cards — although these did not have the legal capacity to perform international operations that Shasta executed.
Simulation of Legality in Venezuela
While there was an announced supposed approval from SUDEBAN in June 2020, the complaint claims that there is no evidence of authenticity in Official Gazettes. Shasta operated for over two years without the necessary operational licensing at the continental level.
Role of the Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC)
The BNC is identified as a critical actor that provided “apparent solidity” to the platform to attract savers and investors.
Improper Use of Custody Accounts: “Custody Accounts” (Agreement 1) were originally designed for the deposit of currencies without allowing transfers to third parties or abroad. However, Shasta and BNC permitted these accounts to receive and remit currencies to any beneficiary, exceeding the legal limits of their jurisdiction.
Strategic Alliance: Press articles from February 2021 highlight the partnership as a milestone for facilitating operations between Venezuela and Europe, allowing the linking of BNC accounts in the App to mobilize funds through QR codes or SEPA/SWIFT transfers.
Mechanism for Money Laundering and Fraud
The absence of compliance controls turned the application into an ideal environment for illicit activities:
Criminal Platform: The ability to send money without limits, without controls, with an operational cost of 3% allowed for directing deposits from Venezuela to multiple accounts in Europe, facilitating the laundering of funds from corruption and drug trafficking.
Deceptive Practices: Deliberate omission of obligations and fraud in the hiring conditions. After Shasta ceased operations, numerous investors reported losing capital, and they have not received any response from Montbrun or Paloma.
Request to the Spanish Prosecutor’s Office
The complainant, Salvador Pimentel Roja, describes the operation as a “transnational criminal enterprise” and calls for immediate legal actions based on the following points:
Banking Complicity: Shasta could not have achieved its criminal objectives without the complicity of the involved banks, which provided guarantees and operational capacity for the deposits.
Non-compliance with Duties: Both conventional banks and fintech companies are obligated to be diligent and rigorous in applying controls, a responsibility that BNC and Shasta ignored.
Therefore, the complainant requested a formal investigation of the executives, determination of their relationship with BNC, as well as the freezing of the assets of those involved to repatriate funds and compensate the victims of the fraud.
Expansion of the Complaint
On March 26, 2022, Salvador Jesús Pimentel Roja extended his complaint before the National Court Prosecutor’s Office and Court #38 in Madrid, detailing a supposed financial scheme operated through the Shasta Technologies S.L. application and the Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC) in Venezuela, which allegedly facilitated both the scam against legitimate savers and money laundering from illicit activities.
He asserts that the platform allowed the entry of monetary flows into the Spanish financial system through Easy Payment & Finance E.P. and thereby evaded international “Know Your Customer” (KYC) protocols and recommendations from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Meanwhile, a group of users used the tool for the lawful repatriation of funds —only to later be defrauded after not receiving their money— while another sector allegedly exploited the anonymity of cash deposits to bank dubious-origin money in Spain.
Technical Route of Money
The complaint identifies a structured money route designed to bring Venezuelan capital into the Spanish banking system, using mandatory intermediaries and specific accounts.
Reception in Venezuela: The money (dollars, bolivars, or euros) was routed through the Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC) in its “Convenio 1 Accounts” or “Custody Accounts.”
Fintech Intermediation: The SHASTA application acted as the transfer manager from BNC.
Bridge in Spain: The funds were sent to the entity Easy Payment & Finance S.L.
Final Destination: Deposit into banks in Spain chosen by the client.
Identified Transaction Limits
According to the analyzed technical data, the scheme allowed for the following operational volumes:
Registered User: Up to USD 1,500,000 per day.
Unregistered User: Up to USD 150,000 per day.
Illegal Operation: Identified as having “UNLIMITED” scope via cash deposits.
The complaint clearly distinguishes between two ways of operating the application, dividing users into two affected or involved groups.
Model A: Repatriation of savings (legitimate/scam)
Process: The client has an account with BNC, meets savings requirements, and identifies the source of their funds. They order the transfer to their account in Spain.
Status: Users under this model are considered scam victims, as they identified their capital and complied with regulations, but money has not been received in destination accounts in Spain.
Model B: Money Laundering (illegal)
Process: Cash was delivered at Shasta offices or BNC branches without the need for the client to have a previous bank account.
Irregularities: Violation of the obligation to verify customer identity (Compliance and FATF Recommendation #10); anonymity of the sender and unknown traceability; destination of funds to any account in Spain, regardless of ownership; costs and times: charging a 3% commission with execution taking between 3 hours and 5 days.
Risks: This model is identified as a potential channel for payments related to corruption, drug trafficking, and terrorism financing.
Regulatory Non-compliance and Lack of Supervision
In the extension of the complaint, Pimentel Roja points out that both SHASTA and BNC operated outside of regulatory bodies and international protocols.
• Evasion of Controls: The operations were allegedly conducted behind the backs of SUDEBAN (Venezuela) and the Bank of Spain.
• International Violations: non-compliance with: United Nations Convention Against Corruption (Arts. 14.2 and 23); FATF Recommendations #10 (Know Your Customer), #14 and #20; Law 10/2010 on Prevention of Money Laundering (Spain); International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism (Art. 18).
Entities and Individuals Implicated
The complaint requests direct legal action against those responsible for the management and development of the platform and the allied banking entity.
Individuals
Jorge Nogueroles: President of Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC).
Leonardo Montbrun Álvarez: Shareholder/developer of Shasta Technologies.
Álex Sicart Ramos: Shareholder/developer of Shasta Technologies.
Daniel Paloma Freire: Shareholder/developer of Shasta Technologies.
Entities
Shasta Technologies S.L. (Spain).
Banco Nacional de Crédito – BNC (Venezuela).
Easy Payment & Finance S.L. (Spain).
Linked Bank Account Registry (BNC)
The complaint provides specific account numbers used at BNC to channel the reported transfers:
Account HolderAccount NumberSHASTA0191-0001-49-2101173131SHASTA0191-0001-41-2101174357SHASTA0191-0001-42-2301020899SHASTA0191-0001-49-2301020906SHASTA0191-0001-48-2301022731SHASTA0191-0001-46-2301022746SHASTA0191-0001-49-2401004461SHASTA0191-0001-41-2401004474SHASTA0191-0001-45-2401005161SHASTA0191-0001-43-2401005176SHASTA0191-0095-21-1995000039LEONARDO MONTBRUN A.0191-0001-40-2101173346LEONARDO MONTBRUN A.0191-0001-46-2301021080LEONARDO MONTBRUN A.0191-0001-48-2401004579LEONARDO MONTBRUN A.0191-0001-44-2401224584ALEX SICART RAMOS0191-0001-46-2101173351ALEX SICART RAMOS0191-0001-40-2301021075ALEX SICART RAMOS0191-0001-40-2301021061ALEX SICART RAMOS0191-0001-46-2401004552ALEX SICART RAMOS0191-0001-41-2401004563
Legal Requests
Salvador Jesús Pimentel Roja requested the following measures from Spanish authorities:
Freezing of assets: this applies to BNC, its president Jorge Nogueroles, Shasta Technologies S.L., and its shareholders (Montbrun, Paloma, Sicart), including family members whose funds are unjustified.
Criminal Charges: against BNC and its management for being the exclusive service providers in Venezuela and responsible for money traceability.
Investigation of Accounts and Recipients: tracking all completed transfers to identify unknown beneficiaries and verify compliance with FATF, Bank of Spain, and SUDEBAN regulations.
International Cooperation: incorporating the evidence provided also before the Venezuelan Public Ministry Prosecutor.
Complaint in Venezuela
On February 22, 2022, Salvador Jesús Pimentel Roja filed a complaint with the Venezuelan Public Ministry against Shasta Technologies and the Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC) for alleged massive fraud and a money laundering scheme operational through a financial application that allowed international transfers without the necessary legal controls. This time, there was also no mention of the Tren de Aragua.
According to the accusation, the directors of the platform and the banking entity conspired to deceive savers by moving funds irregularly between Venezuela and Spain.
The complainant called for thorough investigations, the prosecution of those responsible, and precautionary measures to recover the assets taken from the victims. Lists of linked companies and records of prior legal actions taken before Spanish authorities for the same crimes were also attached.
Request for Expansion of the Complaint in Venezuela
On March 25, 2022, Salvador Jesús Pimentel Roja formally requested an expansion of charges against the operators of the Shasta App and executives of the Banco Nacional de Crédito (BNC).
The complaint asserts that these parties formed a criminal organization dedicated to money laundering, using banking platforms to move illicit funds from Venezuela to Europe without the proper authorization.
Among those named are Álex Sicart, Leonardo Montbrun, and Daniel Paloma, along with the bank president, Jorge Nogueroles, who are attributed crimes such as aggravated fraud, computer espionage, and conspiracy to commit a crime.
The complaint alleges that multimillion-dollar transactions were processed evading regulatory controls, affecting the users’ assets and violating national financial regulations. The plaintiff demands the formal indictment of those involved and the confiscation of assets to ensure compensation for the victims affected by the fraud.
Learn more about this case at:
Venezuelan businessman arrested in the U.S. accused of money laundering and support for a terrorist organization linked to Vladimir Padrino LópezLeonardo Rafael Montbrun Álvarez: from fintech entrepreneurship to a federal accusation of transnational crime
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