Page 575 - IOM Law Society Rules Book

Typology 2: Specialised financial intermediaries / professionals

The cases related to this typology highlight the fact that, when there is evidence of the
misuse of corporate vehicles, a specialised financial intermediary or professional has
often been involved, to a greater or lesser extent, in facilitating the formation of an
entity and exploiting the opportunities presented by foreign jurisdictions to employ
various arrangements that can be used for legitimate purposes but also can be used to
help conceal true beneficial ownership, such as corporate shareholders, corporate
directors and bearer shares. The degree of complicity of these financial
intermediaries and professionals varies widely, with some unknowingly facilitating
illicit activities and others having greater knowledge of their clients’ illicit purposes.

Typology 3: Nominees

The use of nominees may be used to hide the identity of the beneficial owners.
Within this typology, the use of nominees may be grouped into the following
categories: nominee bank account, nominee shareholders and nominee directors.

Typology 4: Shell companies

The use of shell companies to facilitate money laundering is a well-documented
typology. Shell company typologies can be complex, using non financial
professionals to hide the origin of the beneficial owners as well as the origin of the
money.