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5 Ways to Maximize Asset Recovery
ome investigations result in the full recovery of disputed assets. Other times, fraud victims recover only a fraction of the missing funds. How can countries and companies maximize their asset recovery chances?
Act fast // Don’t give suspects time to cover their tracks. Secure all relevant electronic data in a forensically sound manner and launch a full investigation.
Think differently // These days, the smoking gun in a fraud investigation is usually a piece of electronic data that might not live on a laptop or desktop PC, but could just as easily be found in an iPod, smartphone or cloud-based social network.
Work with experts // With billions of dollars potentially at stake, suspects typically go to great lengths to cover their tracks from both a technological and a social/human perspective. Experienced investigators with proven effective methods have the best chance of identifying perpetrators, mapping asset trails and working with the judicial system to achieve optimum asset recovery.
Build a smart database // Data analysis also plays a huge role in national fraud and theft investigations. Having the relevant data is useless unless you are able to properly analyze it and find the connections that matter. FTI Consulting’s proprietary Attenex® analytical software can identify subtle patterns and unearth critical data points. Attenex’s analysis actually improves over time as it learns to identify the sort of material that investigators are seeking.
Go international // Major fraud cases typically involve far-flung money transfers and asset purchases, from Switzerland to the Cayman Islands. To follow the trail and recover assets once they have been located, it pays to work with an international team of investigators who have on-the-ground contacts in each country who are capable of pursuing leads and working with the courts to freeze or seize assets and cash wherever possible.
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