Core Service 04 · Investigations & Due Diligence

Investigations & Due Diligence

Sensitive investigations, KYC compliance, sanctions risk assessment, litigation intelligence, opposition research, background screening, and comprehensive due diligence. Ground-truth intelligence for informed decisions.

01
Due Diligence Investigations

Risk-free business decisions through comprehensive investigation.

Checking whether your intended business partner is solvent, reliable, and ethical is precisely what due diligence investigations reveal. Prevent taking the risk of associating yourself with an organization or person who can discredit or ruin your company.

Our Process

Based on your introduction, we investigate your relations (companies, organizations, or individuals) economically, financially, legally, fiscally, and ethically. Our process is customized to your goals. If you need insight into financial position, we uncover turnover, business connections, subsidiaries, and stakeholders. If you need reputation assessment, we investigate staff members, business relations, and stakeholder networks.

What We Uncover

Our due diligence process surfaces possible fraud, tax evasion, corruption, environmental issues, or any other unethical motives. A one-time or recurring due diligence report provides clear insight into:

  • General history and management structure
  • Current and historical financial issues
  • Overview of assets
  • Pending legal claims or liabilities (fraud, litigation, blacklists, extortion, sanctions)
  • Pending or historical criminal issues
  • Public reputation and media history
  • Network of clients, suppliers, and stakeholders
  • Reputation according to current and former employees
  • Environmental and human rights issues

Relations We Investigate

  • Clients and customers
  • Suppliers and vendors
  • Investors and financial partners
  • Agents and intermediaries
  • Sub-contractors and service providers
  • Governmental organizations
  • NGOs and nonprofit entities
  • Candidate employees

Protect your assets and reputation by making substantiated decisions. Do not take the risk when you can prevent damage and costs.

Before You Ask

What is the purpose of DD investigations?

The purpose of due diligence investigations is to verify the solvency, reliability, and ethical standards of your intended business partners. This process helps prevent risks associated with disreputable organizations or individuals that could harm your reputation or business operations.

It ensures that you make informed, risk-free business decisions.

What does the DD investigation process involve?

The due diligence investigation process involves examining the economic, financial, legal, fiscal, and ethical aspects of companies, organizations, or individuals based on your specific goals. This includes uncovering information about financial positions, reputations, business connections, subsidiaries, stakeholders, and any potential issues such as fraud, tax evasion, corruption, or environmental concerns.

The process is customized to your requirements to aid in mergers, investments, or establishing business relations.

What kind of information is included in a DD investigations report?

A due diligence investigations report from Privy Consul includes comprehensive background checks that provide insights into the general history and management structure of the entity, financial issues, assets overview, legal claims or liabilities, criminal issues, public reputation, network of clients and suppliers, employee opinions, environmental concerns, and human rights issues. This report helps you protect your assets and reputation by making well-informed decisions.

02
KYC & Enhanced Due Diligence

Compliance intelligence beyond traditional databases.

Enhanced due diligence investigations often require information beyond the reach of traditional compliance databases. We conduct international investigations to help banks and financial institutions decide whether to onboard or maintain relationships with high-risk customers.

We do not conduct "check-the-box" due diligence, and we do not provide copy-and-paste reports. Instead, we examine your client's unique situation, assess the specific risks involved, and gather, analyze, and report intelligence that will mitigate those risks and avoid crisis.

International Due Diligence Questions

Knowing the right questions to ask—and understanding how the answers affect risk—is how we help:

  • Does a company or individual actually exist?
  • Are company officials Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs)?
  • Is there sanctions exposure?
  • Is there a trail of litigation?
  • Is there a trail of bankruptcies?
  • Is there a history of fraud?
  • Are there allegations of corruption?
  • Will these people honor their debts?
  • Will they steal your money?
  • Will doing business with them damage your reputation?

Sanctions Risk & Compliance

We help companies avoid costly sanctions violations by developing and implementing risk-based sanctions compliance programs specific to your business, industry, region, and customers. Our services include staff training on U.S. and U.N. sanctions and compliance, plus auditing and stress testing to ensure ongoing program effectiveness.

03
Sensitive Investigations

Discretion is as important as the investigation itself.

Sometimes, the confidentiality of an investigation is paramount. We work closely with clients, conducting legal, ethical, confidential investigations with the discretion your situation demands.

Sometimes, discretion is as important as the investigation itself. We work closely with clients, conducting legal, ethical, confidential and, in some cases, privileged investigations.

Privy Consul was created to meet the needs of clients who place a premium privacy. We work closely with those clients, conducting professional, ethical, confidential, discreet investigations.

Independent Self Due Diligence

Reputation matters. We conduct independent self due diligence investigations and produce privileged and confidential dossiers that help clients prepare for and facilitate third-party due diligence, identify areas for improvement or change, and develop strategic communications or worldwide reputation management plans.

Kleptocracy & Asset Recovery

In cases of government officials under investigation or formally charged, we help find the best possible resolution. For sovereigns victimized by corrupt government officials, we help countries conduct their own investigations, interact with law enforcement and prosecution authorities of other countries, and trace and recover stolen assets.

Our Approach: We work closely with our clients and their counsel. We embed with deal teams and litigation teams. We provide advice on the information, intelligence, and evidence that might exist, where it might reside, and how it can be legally and ethically acquired. And we provide the capabilities and resources to get it done. Known for our rapid response and international dexterity, we do not merely conduct investigations—we use investigations to resolve cases and crises.

04
Background Screening

Confirm your expectations. Know who you're hiring, partnering with, or befriending.

A background screening stops you from worrying. Many employers and decision-makers check accessible information before deciding to hire, rent, do business, or engage with someone. Sometimes your gut feeling is not enough.

We help you make informed decisions by conducting advanced background screening—especially when boundaries don't limit your search. Modern checks may include accessing international databases, retrieving disclosed information, conducting interviews, investigating actual lifestyle versus online-projected version, and checking the dark web.

Common Screening Applications

  • Pre-employment background checks for employees and applicants
  • Volunteer screening and vetting
  • Client and supplier assessment
  • Dating partner investigations
  • Caregiver screening (nurses, doctors, neighbors)
  • Nanny or babysitter vetting
  • Tenant or landlord background checks
  • Investigations of new friends, acquaintances, or lost relatives

Data Privacy & Discretion

In many jurisdictions, Data Protection Acts protect the privacy and human rights of individuals involved. Background checks don't always require secrecy—in many cases, the person involved knows screening is a standard procedure. For us, it always means discreetness and careful data storage are paramount.

Before You Ask

What is the purpose of a background check?

A background check verifies information about individuals before engaging in employment, rental agreements, or relationships, providing assurance for decision-making.

What does a background check typically involve?

Background screenings encompass various checks such as international databases, lifestyle assessments, and dark web searches, tailored to specific requirements.

Who can avail themselves of Privy Consul's background screening services?

Employees, applicants, volunteers, clients, suppliers, caregivers, tenants, landlords, and individuals entering new relationships can benefit from our comprehensive background screening services.

05
Special Investigations

Former intelligence officers and specialized expertise in high-complexity investigations.

Privy Consul can provide former intelligence officers and other specialists to assist with persons-of-interest investigations, social media and deep/dark web monitoring.

06
Litigation Support & Evidence

Intelligence and evidence to support complex legal disputes.

For legal teams needing evidence for cases.

Through intelligence collection and analysis, we obtain solid evidence to support complex legal disputes and arbitrations. We help you achieve your legal objectives and build strong cases with expert litigation support designed to provide the information and evidence you need.

Our Litigation Services

  • Investigative strategy development unique to your case
  • Evidence evaluation and analysis
  • Investigative research and intelligence gathering
  • Witness identification, location, and interviewing
  • Discovery of new evidence beyond the scope of formal discovery
  • Rapid investigation of new issues that arise during trial

Trial lawyers know there is no substitute for preparation. We help you prepare with comprehensive, legally-obtained evidence that strengthens your position.

Due Diligence Through Intelligence

Safeguard your interests against risks through deep and privileged research. Enable prudent decisions about potential partners or prospects.

07
Opposition Research & Counter Intelligence

Know your adversarial actors. Detect threats before they emerge.

Adversarial actors, activist monitoring, narrative threats, and confidential alignment of legal/PR/executive teams.

Not all adversaries wear name tags. We investigate adversarial individuals, activist networks, and coalitions to detect potential threats that may damage reputation or pressure leadership.

What We Track

  • Adversarial individuals, activist networks, and coalitions
  • Strategic lawsuits or litigation-driven influence campaigns
  • Political influencers, donors, and lobbying relationships
  • Historical behavior, financial patterns, and public narratives

Activist Activity & Risk Monitoring

We monitor activist groups, informal coalitions, counterinsurgencies, and online campaigns to detect potential threats that may damage reputation or pressure leadership.

We Track

  • Coordinated campaigns and calls to action
  • Narrative trends across forums, social platforms, and fringe outlets
  • Influence signals between activist groups, media partners, and lawyers
  • Vulnerabilities in your public narrative

Strategic Response

With a full picture of the players, their incentives, and the levers they're likely to pull, we help clients prepare with tactical precision. We provide confidential insight to align legal, PR, and executive teams around a single strategy when needed. While not every threat can be prevented, early detection allows for informed and tactful response.

08
Corporate Intelligence & Investigations Group

Ground-truth intelligence that exceeds standard commercial channels.

We offer a highly localized, legally-obtainable, ground-truth intelligence capability that far exceeds standard commercial intelligence channels. Whether conducting proactive vetting of third-party intermediaries or Know Your Customer due diligence, we deliver undigested information to help you avoid potential violations, legal liability, reputational damage, and fiscal loss.

The Operating Environment

Power attracts scrutiny. Operations of consequence become targets. Assets invite attention from those positioned to exploit them. The vulnerability is not in what you do—it's in what you don't see. Most organizations assume their intelligence apparatus reaches far enough, monitors widely enough, understands deeply enough. It doesn't. Threats arrive through channels conventional surveillance misses. They move through networks your existing protocols were never built to penetrate.

Our Positioning: We are on the ground, anchored in the communities, and ready to meet the challenges of operating in the global environment head-on. We don't believe in being all things to all people. We focus on our core strengths and advise on optimum paths forward—even if it means turning business away.

Our Values: Integrity, commitment, and trust. From sensitive personal matters to complex corporate investigations, we provide a holistic suite of services to deliver clarity and resolution.

Truth through investigation

Know what you need to know.