Skandal! Bringing Down Wirecard

Wirecard looked like a fairy tale until journalists began questioning the numbers, long before officials did. Skandal! follows a determined newsroom team as they sift through emails, balance sheets, and offshore holdings, tracing payments that hint at serious irregularities. The film maps the clash between a polished public image and murky accounting that kept investors calm while cash seemingly vanished. As the reporters press for answers, they face cross border obstacles, legal pressure, and a web of corporate secrecy. The narrative stays focused on documents and on camera testimony, keeping twists and outcomes out of reach while maintaining tension. The camera moves across Berlin, Singapore, and Sydney to show how readers confronted the data and how scrutiny shifted the story.

Directed by James Erskine, Skandal! Bringing Down Wirecard premiered in 2022 as a documentary that chronicles the Wirecard scandal through journalism. The film draws on public records and firsthand interviews with the reporters who chased the story, and situates Wirecard within the broader fintech boom. Its approach blends archival footage, expert commentary, and direct testimony to map a multinational fraud.

Box office: The film had a limited theatrical run and did not publish widely reported grosses, a common pattern for documentary features with niche release and streaming strategy, often complemented by festival showings and online platforms.

Awards: No major nominations or wins are listed in prominent databases as of its release. The film is recognized for its timely subject matter and rigorous sourcing rather than for formal accolades.

Reception centers on the power of investigative journalism to illuminate fraud and hold players to account. The film emphasizes transparency, cross border cooperation, and the fragility of trust in the fintech era. It presents a restrained, evidence led portrait rather than a polemic. It invites viewers to weigh corporate claims against the records.