Practical Steps to Freeze Funds Transferred to Romania and Maximize Recovery in IBAN Fraud (Business Email Compromise / False Supplier Fraud)
- Talpes.law
- 4 hours ago
- 6 min read
With the increasing frequency of cyber fraud, more and more people—consumers and small business owners alike—find themselves in a situation where they have transferred large sums of money to a bank account, only to discover later that the account actually belonged to a fraudster. Unfortunately, there are already a number of cases in which the fraudsters come from Romania, and the account into which the money is fraudulently transferred is opened at a bank in Romania. This gives the case an international dimension, and the efforts of the victim and the law enforcement authorities to recover the loss must take place in several countries – both in the country where the defrauded victim is located and in the country where the fraudsters are holding the money.
In such cases, the criminal investigation may take a long time, but the immediate and essential objective of the victim and the law enforcement authorities must be to freeze (preserve, block) the money in the fraudster's account so that it can be recovered at the end of the investigation and criminal proceedings.
This article briefly explains what IBAN fraud is and what legal tools can be quickly activated to freeze the transferred amounts.
What is IBAN Fraud (Business Email Compromise / False Supplier Fraud)
This type of fraud is known in practice as IBAN fraud, False supplier fraud, or Business Email Compromise (BEC). It is a form of computer fraud in which the victim is tricked into making a bank transfer to an account controlled by fraudsters, believing that they are paying a legitimate partner. Consent exists, but it is vitiated by deception.
How fraudsters operate
Fraudsters intercept or mimic communication between the victim and a real partner (seller, supplier, notary, real estate agent).
They send an apparently authentic message in which they:
either communicate a new IBAN for payment;
or send a modified invoice with different bank details.
The victim makes the transfer to an account controlled by the fraudsters.
The money is quickly withdrawn or transferred to other accounts, sometimes within a few hours.
The most common practical configurations
False supplier fraud – fraudulent change of a real supplier's IBAN. The victim pays a legitimate invoice, but to a fraudulently substituted account.
Seller impersonation fraud – fictitious seller or stolen identity in transactions involving valuable goods (vehicles, real estate, equipment). The advance payment or price is paid into an account controlled by the network.
CEO fraud/mandate fraud – used in the business environment, where an employee is persuaded to urgently execute a transfer at the apparent request of management.
The common element: voluntary bank transfer, based on an appearance of legitimacy.
In these situations, time is of the essence. Fraudsters "hide" the money very quickly. Therefore, the first measures must aim to block the amounts, not just initiate a criminal investigation.
SEPA Recall – the first urgent measure after making the transfer
If the payment was made via SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) transfer, the first step to take immediately is to request a SEPA Recall through the paying bank.
What is SEPA Recall
SEPA Recall is an interbank procedure whereby the ordering bank requests the beneficiary bank to return the transferred amount in cases such as fraud or error.
Important:
it is not an automatic cancellation;
it only works if the money is still available in the account;
speed is crucial (ideally: within the first 24 hours).
If the funds have not yet been withdrawn or transferred further, the beneficiary bank may accept the return. However, if the amount has already been dissipated, the effectiveness of the procedure decreases significantly.
SEPA Recall is therefore a mechanism for immediate intervention, but it does not offer any guarantees.
In practice, there have been cases where victims have managed to get their money back through the SEPA Recall procedure, but this is more of a happy exception than the rule.
Filing a criminal complaint in the victim's country of residence – necessary to trigger a criminal investigation, but sometimes insufficient to quickly freeze the money
Filing a criminal complaint in the victim's country of residence is a necessary step in holding the perpetrators criminally liable. However, the victim's primary objective is to recover the loss, not just to punish the offender.
Criminal complaint:
initiates the investigation;
enables the use of international cooperation mechanisms;
creates the legal framework for requesting precautionary measures.
Freezing of funds in Romania through the European Investigation Order (EIO)
Within the European Union, the authorities in the country of residence can issue a European Investigation Order (EIO), which is sent to the Romanian authorities for execution.
The EIO may request:
the identification of the account holder in Romania;
obtaining bank documents;
the tracing of financial flows;
freezing of funds held in the Romanian bank account.
Advantage: it is a standardized instrument of judicial cooperation.Practical limitation: it can take up to several months.
Given that the order may take time to issue and execute, it is advisable to initiate direct proceedings in Romania in parallel, including by filing a separate criminal complaint and requesting precautionary measures.
Freezing Funds in Romania Through Criminal Proceedings and Asset Freezing Orders
When the account into which the money was transferred as a result of fraud is opened in Romania, the victim can file a criminal complaint directly with the Romanian law enforcement authorities. This will lead to the opening of a criminal case and the launch of a local investigation, and the fact that there is already a criminal investigation open in the victim's country of origin is not an impediment. The aim is not only to open a criminal case, but also to request the seizure of the sums in the account.
A precautionary seizure order:
involves the temporary freezing of the money;
prevents their withdrawal or transfer;
guarantees the possibility of recovering the damage.
Given how fraudsters operate—quickly withdrawing funds or transferring them to other accounts—this measure is effective in preventing the disappearance of money, as Romanian criminal investigation authorities can act in less time than it takes to issue and execute a European Investigation Order.
Even if the amounts are no longer in the account, other assets of the person under investigation (real estate, cars, cryptocurrencies) may be frozen, up to the amount of the damage.
Temporary freezing of funds by notifying Romania’s National Office for Preventing and Combating Money Laundering (ONPCSB)
A potentially faster way to intervene is to report the case to Romania’s National Office for Preventing and Combating Money Laundering (ONPCSB).
In the context of bank transfer fraud:
if the money is still in the banking system;
if there are suspicions of money laundering;
if the amounts are circulating in the form of suspicious international transactions;
the ONPCSB can analyze the transactions and, under certain conditions, order the temporary freezing of the suspicious funds before they are withdrawn.
This measure is preventive in nature and is extremely valuable in the first few days after the fraud, as it does not involve the formalities of filing a criminal complaint and/or analysis by the prosecutor or approval by a judge.
Given that criminal complaints in Romania can also take time to obtain a protective measure, reporting to the ONPCSB can be a complementary, rapid-impact route that can lead to the freezing of funds.
Recovery in IBAN Fraud: the strategic priority is to freeze the money, and the lawyer's role is to coordinate all steps quickly and in an integrated manner.
For efficient recovery in IBAN fraud cases, the main difficulty is not identifying the legal framework, but counteracting the speed with which funds are redistributed and hidden. Therefore, the strategic priority is not only to hold the perpetrators criminally liable, but also to quickly freeze assets before they are irreversibly dissipated.
An effective approach requires the coordinated use of several tools:
immediate initiation of the SEPA Recall procedure;
filing a criminal complaint in the state of residence to trigger judicial cooperation, and requesting a European Investigation Order for cross-border measures;
filing a criminal complaint in Romania with an express request for preventive seizure;
notifying the National Office for Preventing and Combating Money Laundering to temporarily suspend suspicious operations.
In this context, the role of the lawyer becomes essential. Their intervention is not limited to drafting complaints, but also involves:
the legal structuring of the proceedings so that the emphasis is placed on precautionary measures;
initiating parallel proceedings to avoid wasting time;
technical and reasoned communication with banks, law enforcement authorities, and specialized institutions;
monitoring the status of proceedings and quickly adapting the strategy according to developments in the situation.
Essentially, the difference between a definitive loss and a real chance of recovery lies in the speed, consistency, and legal coordination of the actions taken in the first few days after the fraud is discovered.
Authors: Simona Oniu, David Talpeș
For more details, visit us or book a phone or video call — see our contact information below. We speak English, German, Italian, Hungarian, and Romanian.
Talpeș - SCPA (Law Firm)
str. Avram Iancu, nr. 16, ap. 9
400089 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
tel:+40364133211
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