Kazakhstan puts blogger “Maha.dxb” on international wanted list

Kazakhstan’s Agency for Financial Monitoring has placed Uzbek national Makhmud Khikmatov, known as “Maha.dxb,” on an international wanted list. He is suspected of promoting illegal online casinos.

A scheme was operating in Kazakhstan that provided access to online casinos, processed deposits and payouts via acquiring, mobile commerce and cryptocurrency, and recruited new players through advertising.

Khikmatov was responsible for recruiting influencers working in Kazakhstan. He requested account statistics, audience geography and demographics, and reach figures from bloggers. Ad pricing was determined based on this data.

In total, according to the AFM, more than 35 bloggers were recruited for advertising through him. Among them was Kaysar Kamza, who was extradited from Vietnam to Kazakhstan on August 6. The AFM also claims that Kamza posted referral links to online casinos and received compensation for user click-throughs.

The court authorized Khikmatov’s pretrial detention. He is currently on the international wanted list.

• Source: https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/afm/press/news/details/1271169