A €1.5 million dividend payment to a Cyprus-registered holding company has come under examination in Greece’s widening Pizza Fan investigation, as estimated tax losses exceed €35 million and informal takeover discussions emerge around the restaurant chain’s shuttered network.

The development brings fresh attention to the group’s financial links with Cyprus, while Greek authorities have extended their assessment of the suspected tax evasion to 2016 – 2026, considerably earlier than the 2022 starting point initially reported.

According to Greek reporting citing evidence in the investigation, a dividend relating to profits from 2022, 2023 and 2024 was transferred from the Greek operating company to a Cyprus bank account in August. A subsequent transaction of about €1.34m reportedly moved from that account to a joint account held by founder Konstantinos Antaras and his wife.

The bank movements have not been independently verified from the underlying records, and a dividend distribution or transfer to Cyprus is not itself evidence of an offence. Their relevance to the alleged scheme remains for investigators to establish.

The Nicosia-based holding company, Fanatics Pizza Deliveries and Food Services Limited, was incorporated in 2004 and owns 15,760 of the Greek company’s 15,763 shares, approximately 99.98 per cent. A Cyprus corporate registry extract dated October 22 identifies Antaras as a 90 per cent shareholder, with Dimitrios Iliopoulos holding the remaining 10 per cent.

In its official statement on October 23, the Hellenic Police described the alleged leaders of the suspected operation as the beneficial controllers of a foreign-based company owning almost the entire Greek business. Investigators are examining associated financial flows, while the police have asked Greece’s anti-money-laundering authority to initiate procedures to freeze assets belonging to individuals and legal entities involved. No freeze of the Cyprus company has been confirmed.

The same statement raised the estimated loss to the Greek state to more than €35m in VAT and income tax, compared with the €25m VAT figure reported when the investigation began. Police estimate that over €150m in taxable sales or other taxable amounts was concealed over the decade. These are preliminary investigative estimates, not final tax assessments.

Greek police confirmed 23 arrests, with a further 109 people identified in the case file. They also reported the seizure of more than €1.28m in cash and the preparation of 108 inspection reports covering 2023 to 2026, which have been sent to the Greek tax authority for assessment.

Meanwhile, the immediate business problem remains unresolved. Pizza Fan’s restaurants have been unable to take orders since last Thursday after investigators seized equipment connected to its central ordering operation. Greek labour officials have confirmed that no administrative order closed the business, nor had employees’ contracts been terminated, although restoring a functioning ordering system remains a practical obstacle.

The chain said on Friday that extensive promotions involving free products may have caused confusion over sales calculations. It pledged to cooperate with the authorities and said its priority was to reopen the network and protect franchise partners and more than 2,500 workers. According to the company, annual wages across the network exceed €36m, with social insurance contributions above €9m.

Reports of possible investor interest have since begun to circulate. However, the Greek business press reported on Monday that any rescue would depend on the existing ownership, legal control of the business and a workable route to reopening. No agreed takeover or confirmed buyer has been announced.

The commercial exposure extends to around 110 outlets, more than 80 franchise operators and over 100 suppliers, according to industry reporting. The disruption follows a year in which the central Greek company increased turnover to €60.44m but saw net profit drop 66.5 per cent to €533,112, leaving little room for a prolonged interruption to trading.

Workers have organised a demonstration outside the company’s offices in Halandri for 2pm on Monday, seeking guarantees on wages, employment and social insurance. The Greek labour ministry says active employment contracts continue to carry wage obligations, although the franchise structure complicates responsibility across the network.

The arrested suspects are expected to give evidence before judicial investigators on Monday and Tuesday. For the Cyprus holding company and its Greek subsidiaries, the next test will be whether operations can restart while the tax investigation continues and whether any prospective investor is prepared to take on the business’s legal and financial uncertainty.

The allegations have not been determined by a court, and all those accused are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.