Karin van Wingerde, Henk van de Bunt (Erasmus School of Law), dr. Nicholas Lord (Manchester University), and Liz Campbell (Edinburgh Law School) received a GBP 72887 grant from the European and Social Research Council in the UK for their proposal ‘The (Mis)Use of Corporate Vehicles by Transnational Organised Crime Groups in the Concealment, Conversion and Control of Illicit Finance’
Earlier this year, Van Wingerde and Van de Bunt had already received a € 82522 grant from Police & Science (Politie & Wetenschap) for a similar project.
In both projects the researchers will investigate how, why and under which conditions transnational organized crime groups use corporate vehicles (like trusts and limited liability partnerships) for the concealment, conversion and control of illicit finance in the UK and the Netherlands.Â
The Police & Science project particularly focuses on the role of legal and professional facilitators (such as lawyers, notaries, accountants) in setting up and selling corporate vehicles for illicit purposes. This project builds on previous research that Van Wingerde and Van de Bunt did in collaboration with (among others) professor Maarten Kroeze in 2007. Given the recent discussion about the Panama Papers, it is (again) a very timely issue to study.
Both projects will start on 1 December 2016.Â