Quick Facts
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Fabian Thylmann (born in 5 June 1978 in Aachen) is a German businessman who was founder and managing partner of the adult website conglomerate Manwin (now MindGeek). In October 2013, he sold his stake in the company, which was at the time the largest adult entertainment operator in the world. Since then he acts as an Angel Investor for young Startups in Brussels, Belgium where he also operates a Co-Working & Incubation space, SN-Cube. In late 2015 he acquired Frontback and is focusing on revamping the popular social photo sharing app.
Biography
Thylmann is married with two children, and he started computer programming when he was 17. His breakthrough came in the late 1990s when he developed software called NATS (Next-generation Affiliate Tracking Software), which enabled website operators to track users clicks on advertisements and links so that they could be paid commission. Thylmann used the money he made with NATS to buy various companies in the adult industry, and in March 2010 he established Manwin by acquiring the companies Mensef and Interhub.
Sale of Manwin
It was reported in October 2013 that Thylmann had stepped down and sold Manwin for €73 million. The reason for selling the company remains undisclosed.
Upon the sale of Manwin, Thylmann wrote in a letter to employees:
Extradition and indictment
In December 2012, he was extradited from Belgium to Germany on suspicion of tax evasion. Thylmann did not contest the extradition order, although he reportedly denied avoiding paying tax.
In April 2015, Thylmann was indicted by the Cologne, Germany federal prosecutor on tax evasion charges. The charges were dropped when he paid 5 Million Euros but he still faces a suspended sentence in another case.