Due Diligence

Integrity Due Diligence – Towards an integrated approach to Compliance (I)

The serious impact and long-term effects of economic crimes, such as money laundering, corruption and fraud (‘MLFC’), may not seem to be as apparent as those resulting from hard security threats. These crimes do, however, pose some of the most menacing risks currently facing governments, institutions and corporations. The following article aims to discuss an…

The UK Bribery Act and the Call for Integrity Due Diligence

The United Kingdom Bribery Act 2010 that came into effect on July 1, 2011, marks a new development in extraterritorial jurisdiction in the context of the worldwide campaign against corruption. This article aims to explore, in how far foreign companies are affected by the Bribery Act and what they can do in order to avoid…

Corruption Risks and International Climate Investments

The several hundred billion Dollars to be invested in measures to fight climate change over the  coming years, not only encourage the good who seek to halt dangerous global warming, but they also attract the crooks who look for new booty. Transparency International (TI), the renowned international civil anti-corruption organization, recently published a comprehensive report…

The Political Risk Analyst (II)

Political Risk Analysis is the child of two parents: political economy and area studies. Both academic fields are, per se, interdisciplinary and multifold in their approaches to studying the interrelations between political, economic, social and cultural developments in specific countries and regions, and are therefore a perfect match. As outlined in the first part of…

Political Risk and Political Due Diligence (I)

The dramatic and still undecided processes of regime change in the Arab world highlight the fundamental relevance of political risk for doing business in countries that were wrongfully regarded as stable, until the outbreak of civil unrest. Even though political violence in host countries is the most vivid case of political risk, there are other…

Business and Investment Regulations Worldwide

In order to promote the economic and social development of countries, improving their business environment for private entrepreneurs is key. The World Bank’s eight annual Doing Business report, which tracks relevant regulations in 183 economies, has become influential since governments are increasingly concerned about their rank and reputation in the global commercial arena. Given this…

Reputational Due Diligence – The key to strategic risk management

Reputational Due Diligence supports the strategic risk management of business ventures in international markets. As introduced in the following article, the combination of Integrity Due Diligence with Political Due Diligence enables an investor to gain a comprehensive assessment of possible reputational risks attached to a business partner. This concerns compliance and corporate governance issues in…

The Third EU AML Directive

As a result of the financial crisis, the importance of effectively combating financial crime has once again been catapulted to the top of the international political agenda.