THE PROBLEM

Individuals and communities affected by human rights abuses, environmental harm and international crimes often face inefficient accountability mechanisms and minimal to no restitution. Perpetrators and their facilitators are rarely held accountable. However, these crimes often leave a financial trail. Uncovering this information can be the difference between securing justice for people and communities who have suffered from these crimes, and leaving these bad actors unchecked.

At FIND, we specialise in collecting, analysing, and interpreting financial and other public records to document the movement of money or goods, and establish links between individuals, companies, assets, and jurisdictions. We employ a range of investigative techniques—including open-source research and interviews—to gather intelligence and track financial flows. We piece together a variety of documents and data, including corporate filings, financial statements, title deeds, investment records, loan agreements, invoices, and shipping documents.

Using these tools and techniques, we can identify perpetrators and uncover broader networks of individuals and entities participating in or enabling crimes. We can trace the flow of funds that enabled the commission of crimes and map the supply chain involved. We can trace proceeds of crimes which can be sanctioned, frozen or seized to compensate individuals and communities, offering recognition and the means to rebuild their lives.

Financial investigative expertise remains limited within civil society. FIND fills this gap, equipping organisations with cutting-edge tools and methods applied with legal and ethical rigour.

  • We investigate the perpetrators, financiers and enablers fuelling, enabling and benefiting from atrocities and grave human rights violations. 

WHAT WE DO

We work primarily across five areas:

  • We identify the network of individuals and companies developing, commercialising and distributing technologies that curtail freedoms and democratic engagement.

  • We provide actionable information to organisations challenging unfair systems and deep-rooted corruption disproportionately impacting minorities, underrepresented communities, indigenous communities, and marginalised groups.

  • We map the companies, industries and supply chains fuelling and benefitting from environmental harm. 

  • We investigate individuals and companies who commit human trafficking and modern slavery, as well as those who engage in exploitative employment practices. We trace their assets to support people affected in accessing compensation.

OUR EXPERTISE

FIND provides its expertise in two main areas:

  • Fact-finding & case-building: We conduct meticulous investigations, gathering information and evidence to support strategic litigation, soft-law interventions, commissions of inquiry, sanctions submissions, regulatory action, NGO reporting and investigative journalism.

  • Capacity-building: We develop and provide investigative and case management tools, workshops, reference materials, and mentorship to equip partners with financial investigation skills.

Fact-finding & case-building

Our core expertise is in conducting meticulous investigations. We use a range of tools and methodologies in our work, including asset tracing, corporate profiling, network mapping, ownership analysis, and sector and supply chain analysis.

Our investigative expertise, rigorous reporting, advanced tools and multidisciplinary team uniquely position us within the civil society ecosystem.

    • Unpacking opaque and/or complex corporate structures to establish ownership and/or control, and identifying subsidiaries, affiliates, and financiers.

    • Identifying the principal actors operating in a sector, and examining the flow of commodities, services, and finances through the network of suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, and customers.

    • Identifying assets owned by individuals, companies or states of interest to support financial sanctions and restitution.

    • Tracking individuals, groups and companies involved in, or with knowledge of, an issue or a crime.

    • Identifying links to certain jurisdictions to access accountability mechanisms and/or highlight gaps in transparency and regulatory oversight.

    • Navigating public registries and adeptly mining rich, open-source databases.

    • Discreetly engaging with witnesses and sources close to our investigations.

    • Collecting, verifying, preserving and presenting information appropriately for legal proceedings.

Capacity-building

A central component of our mission is building and strengthening financial investigative capacity in human rights, environmental and international justice spaces.

We take a long-term tailored approach to capacity-building, offering bespoke workshops, tool development, and mentorship—each customised for our unique civil society partners and adapted to reflect their specific needs and interests. Rather than one-size-fits-all training, we provide ongoing support to ensure our partners can apply and deepen their skills over time. To date, we have supported hundreds of international criminal lawyers, human rights defenders, and environmental activists upskill in financial investigations.

WORKSHOPS

We develop and deliver workshops, research surgeries and bespoke training to build our partners' capacity in financial investigations. These workshops can be coupled with online reference materials and ongoing support on live matters.

TOOL DEVELOPMENT

We develop investigative and case management tools and frameworks to improve both our own investigations and those of our partners.

MENTORSHIP

We offer partners guidance, advice, and support at every stage of a project, helping them develop skills and confidence in case management, research planning, and analysis.

OUR APPROACH

Collaboration is at the heart of our work, shaping how we engage with partners at the different stages of each project.  We achieve the greatest impact by combining diverse skills and perspectives to tackle complex challenges, working in partnerships and coalitions. We work closely with our partners to design evidence-based accountability and advocacy strategies, balancing their objectives with the accessibility and/or availability of information. We prioritise sharing knowledge to strengthen the capacity of those we work with. We build relationships founded on radical transparency, shared responsibility and trust.

FIND strives to be the best in our field and to produce work that is of the highest quality. We owe it to our civil society partners to ensure that our work enables them to achieve their goals and hold bad actors accountable. This commitment means working hard and engaging in a process of continual learning and development.

We take pride in aligning our approach with our values and core beliefs. Compassion, shared responsibility and collaborative decision-making are fundamental principles that guide our operations. Where traditional methods don’t fit, we are committed to reflecting, adapting and creating new ones.

We prioritise the health and wellbeing of our team. This includes, but is not limited to, flexible and hybrid working, generous leave allowance, a public holiday exchange scheme, ‘shutdown’ weeks where we decrease digital communications such as calls and online meetings, private health insurance and overtime monitoring to ensure fair time off in lieu.