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Thousands of Chinese Manufacturers Raise Red Flags For Risk of Prison Labor
In recent years, consumers have found evidence to suggest that some Chinese manufacturers use prison labor to fulfill demands from multinationals. How these manufacturers contract prisoners and how their use of prison labor becomes hidden in the supply chain are...
Buyer Beware: Counterfeit Mask Suppliers in the COVID-19 Era
Update: Since this article's publication, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated its guidance regarding the use of face masks to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. These changes have been reflected within the article. Always check the CDC...
Associates of Ex-Chief of Mexico’s State-Owned Oil Firm Connected to 18 Previously Unidentified Companies
An investigation by Sayari has uncovered 18 previously unidentified companies directly connected to associates and corporate advisors of Emilio Ricardo Lozoya Austin, the former director of Mexico’s state-owned oil firm Pemex. Lozoya was recently arrested in Malaga,...
Sayari Identifies Corporate Network of Alleged Fentanyl Trafficker in Sinaloa, Mexico
A recent investigation by Sayari uncovered a Mexico-based corporate network connected to an individual suspected of supplying the Sinaloa Cartel with illicit fentanyl. Sayari used corporate and trademark records from Mexico to uncover five previously unidentified...
Identifying Companies Related to Potential Forced Uyghur Labor in Global Supply Chains
Forced labor continues to threaten the supply chains of companies that rely on Chinese manufacturing. A new report from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) provides evidence to suggest that the Chinese government may be forcing Uighur and other ethnic...
Sayari Uncovers Corporate Network of Jordanian Tycoon Charged with Financial Crimes
Sayari analysts have identified the commercial network of a Jordanian businessman following his January arrest in Jordan for alleged financial crimes. The network—spanning five countries and including a major MENA Jordanian authorities arrested Khaldoun Rashid Said...
Sayari Labs Announces Global Partnership with NICE Actimize
Washington DC, February 21, 2020 – Sayari Labs, the emerging leader in financial intelligence and supply chain risk solutions, today announced a strategic partnership with NICE Actimize, a global leader in autonomous financial crime management. NICE Actimize is the...
Tracking Bashar Al-Assad’s Alleged Money Laundering Network in Sayari Graph
Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly stated that Ammar Sahloul holds shares of Firstone International worth 40,000,000 Turkish Lira (~$6.7 million). Ammar's stake is worth 400,000 Turkish Lira (~$61,000). Sayari apologizes for the error. A Jordanian...
Sayari Announces $9 Million in Series B Funding
Sayari Labs, the emerging leader in financial intelligence and supply chain risk solutions, today announced $9 million in Series B funding. The round was led by Arsenal Growth, a leading US private equity firm focused on bridging the gap between government, enterprise...
Using Spousal Information on Corporate Records to Track Asia’s “El Chapo”
Using Spousal Information on Corporate Records to Track Asia’s “El Chapo” A person with the same name as a prominent international drug trafficker’s wife is a shareholder of two companies registered in Macau, an autonomous region on the south coast of China, according...
Intermediaries of Venezuela’s CLAP Program Linked to Companies in Lebanon
Intermediaries of Venezuela’s CLAP Program Linked to Companies in Lebanon A public records investigation using Sayari Search uncovered six companies in Lebanon with names similar to known intermediaries of the Venezuelan government’s subsidized food program (CLAP)....
How to Investigate Financial Crime in Eastern Europe Using Sales Receipts
How to Investigate Financial Crime in Eastern Europe Using Sales Receipts For many, printed receipts are an increasingly outdated nuisance that take up space in the bottom of our bags or the consoles of our cars. However, in some jurisdictions around the world they...
Chinese Corporate Records Reveal Foreign Investment in U.S. Energy Infrastructure
Chinese Corporate Records Reveal Foreign Investment in U.S. Energy Infrastructure Chinese corporate records available in Sayari Search reveal that a Chinese government supervisory body beneficially owns a U.S.-based manufacturing facility that operates in the U.S....
Uncovering Hikvision Subsidiaries in the Open Source
Chinese technology firm Hikvision has been added to the U.S. Commerce Department’s Entity List for its role in supplying surveillance equipment to authorities in Xinjiang province, where Uighurs and other predominantly Muslim ethnic minorities have been subject to...
Introducing Sayari Knowledge Center
Sayari is proud to announce the launch of Sayari Knowledge Center, a free-to-access repository of know-how and tips accumulated by Sayari analysts over hundreds of investigations. What’s in Sayari Knowledge Center? Sayari Knowledge Center is a constantly growing...
Despite Sanctions, Fentanyl Exporter Maintains Ownership and Control
On August 21, 2019, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned Chinese national Yan Xiaobing for shipping hundreds of packages of synthetic opioids, including fentanyl, to the United States. However, the designation did not mention Yan’s associate, Hu Qi, who is...
Ships Exporting DPRK Coal Owned by UK Companies
We conducted the following investigation parallel to an investigation conducted by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) on the Weihai World-Shipping Freight network. In its comprehensive report, released Sep. 20, 2019, RUSI shows how the network continues to...
Russian Research Institute Added to Entity List is Just the Tip of the Iceberg
A Russian research institute was added to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Entity List last month for its ownership by a Russian defense company that the United States sanctioned in 2014. The research institute is just one of several such entities majority owned by...
Mexican Union Leader Arrested for Human Trafficking Connected to Several Cancun-Based Companies
Investigation Leads to Mexican Union Leader Arrest Mexico’s tax authority and Attorney General’s Office announced on Sep. 13 that they had launched an investigation into four companies with ties to an alleged human trafficker arrested in July. Sayari analysts have...
How to Map an Illicit Actor’s Family Members with Lebanese Voter Rolls
A common technique that illicit actors use to hide their corporate connections and mask financial transactions is to have a nominee individual stand in as a shareholder or officer. This can help obfuscate true control of an entity as well as provide plausible...
Breaking Down the Mexican National ID Number
White Paper: Behind the Petro Cryptocurrency
Last year, the Venezuelan government created the Petro, a blockchain-based cryptocurrency. Venezuelan officials have claimed that it will help to evade U.S. sanctions and authorized seven exchange houses to handle Petro transactions. The U.S. government sanctioned the...
Mexican Fentanyl Producer Linked to Monterrey Chemical Companies
An accused fentanyl producer arrested by Mexican authorities earlier this year owns and operates several chemical companies, an investigation by Sayari has found. These companies could be channels for importing illegal fentanyl precursors into Mexico or diverting...
New Evidence Reveals Australian Firm’s Links to DPRK Coal
According to 2018 media reports, Sydney, Australia-based property developer Brigt Australia Pty Ltd allegedly falsified shipping documents and arranged a shipment of anthracite coal from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to Vietnam. While media reports...
Russia Guts Corporate Disclosures to Counter U.S. Sanctions
In a direct response to economic sanctions, Russian Prime Minister Dmitriy Medvedev signed two executive decrees this year allowing some companies to omit shareholder and subsidiary information from their corporate disclosures. If fully implemented, the measures could...
Tracking Russian Nuclear Incidents through Vessel Movements
Last weekend, Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy company announced the deaths of five employees killed in an August 8 explosion. The explosion occurred at a naval testing site near the village of Nyonoksa, in the country’s Arkhangelsk region. Early reports indicate...
Mixed Nuts, IEDs, and Unexpected Sanctions Risk Exposure
It’s easy to assume that industries and goods that aren’t obviously dangerous, like mixed nuts, confectionaries, and chocolate, are safe from exposure to sanctions risks. However, illicit actors may operate across multiple sectors, some of them innocuous. A Lebanese...
Chinese Tankers Using Evasive Tactics to Transport Iranian Oil
Chinese Oil Tankers Moving Iranian Crude Oil tankers linked to Chinese state-owned oil company CNPC have transported large amounts of Iranian crude oil in recent months, according to a report this week from the Financial Times. The oil shipments appear to violate U.S....
Obfuscation and Sanctions Evasion: Circular Ownership in Russia
White Paper: Mexico Sanctions on the Decline
Institutions concerned with sanctions risk can better prepare for the future by examining the evolution of key sanctions programs over time. This type of analysis not only provides context for ongoing actions but can help compliance professionals better understand...