In the last two years, Kreller has completed more than 100 due diligence reports in India. This includes more than 70 Level A reports over 30 custom or special investigations, such as conflict of interest and corruption investigations, Kreller B (in-depth investigation) reports, and more minor-scope investigations.
Our lead investigator in India is a retired Inspector General with the Intelligence Bureau for the federal government in India. He served in this role for over 30 years, handling cases relating to national security, terrorism, industrial and executive security, and counter intelligence. He has a Masters of Administration and a Masters of Philosophy in Economics. He has been working in the private sector since 2011, conducting due diligence investigations, insurance fraud, intellectual property investigations, surveillance, and executive protection.
Conducting due diligence in India presents many challenges. These include companies registered as partnerships, site visits, education, media articles, and search functions.
Companies registered as partnerships face several challenges. Registering is not mandatory. Additionally, information about partnership firms has not been computerized in most states in India. Therefore, confirming or locating details regarding these entities can be difficult unless information is provided upfront. Our experience shows that partnerships and proprietorships are more widespread in India than in other jurisdictions. Financial details for partnerships and sole proprietorships typically cannot be obtained.
Another challenge is due to site visits. Site visits to business addresses have become more difficult to conduct as most office complexes have keyed entries. Therefore, a discreet entrance may not be possible. It has also become more difficult to discreetly visit residential addresses as many residences have security guards who require identification and/or ask questions before allowing admittance.
Challenges for education include education confirmation, which cannot be conducted solely by name. It requires registration numbers, the year of graduation, and the name of the institution.
Regarding media articles, India typically provides less identifying information regarding persons. Therefore, it is difficult to corroborate if the individual named in an article is the subject of the investigation or just a name match. This is exacerbated by many Indian names being relatively common and names not being consistently reproduced (e.g., use/disuse of fathers’ names and use/disuse of initials). It is common in India to find an individual called “V. Singh” with no full name available. Some popular Indian names have multiple spellings, and media articles on the same person may use different spellings to identify the person. For example, the name “Rajiv” can also be spelled as “Rajeev” or “Rajib.” Media research is conducted on these variations to locate media articles for individuals.
Finally, search functions for Indian courts often require precise search terms. For instance, rather than being able to search by a party name, in many jurisdictions, you must specify the specific court location (rather than simply jurisdiction and level), the party, the year, and the case type. This results in legal and criminal research being a very manual process of searching each possible combination of elements.
General Counsel for a Medical Device manufacturer contacted Kreller after receiving an email from an individual purporting to be a surgeon who had been offered bribes through a client's distributor in exchange for prescribing the client’s devices.
Kreller researched the identity of the surgeon who reportedly sent the email and the email address used to send the allegation. Kreller investigated the sender’s identity and found inconsistencies, including a poorly constructed profile and typos in the email. The alleged surgeon in India denied the accusations and suggested it was a common tactic by rival companies. The investigation led the client to conclude the allegations were unfounded, saving them time and resources.
A well-known casual restaurant franchisor engaged Kreller to conduct a routine background investigation into a potential master franchise in New Delhi. The investigation found no red flags in media, courts, or local police queries, registration was verified, and licensing agreements with other franchise companies existed. However, after reporting Kreller’s findings to the prospect, they told our client they also represented at least two additional concepts that would prevent them from engaging with our client.
India can present several challenges from a due diligence perspective: weak corporate governance, increased security concerns, and specific search requirements to access/verify data. However, it’s an extremely attractive market if approached correctly. By proactively researching a potential engagement, you can develop a meaningful relationship with a qualified partner in an explosive growth market.
In the last two years, Kreller has completed more than 100 due diligence reports in India. This includes more than 70 Level A reports over 30 custom or special investigations, such as conflict of interest and corruption investigations, Kreller B (in-depth investigation) reports, and more minor-scope investigations.
Our lead investigator in India is a retired Inspector General with the Intelligence Bureau for the federal government in India. He served in this role for over 30 years, handling cases relating to national security, terrorism, industrial and executive security, and counter intelligence. He has a Masters of Administration and a Masters of Philosophy in Economics. He has been working in the private sector since 2011, conducting due diligence investigations, insurance fraud, intellectual property investigations, surveillance, and executive protection.
Conducting due diligence in India presents many challenges. These include companies registered as partnerships, site visits, education, media articles, and search functions.
Companies registered as partnerships face several challenges. Registering is not mandatory. Additionally, information about partnership firms has not been computerized in most states in India. Therefore, confirming or locating details regarding these entities can be difficult unless information is provided upfront. Our experience shows that partnerships and proprietorships are more widespread in India than in other jurisdictions. Financial details for partnerships and sole proprietorships typically cannot be obtained.
Another challenge is due to site visits. Site visits to business addresses have become more difficult to conduct as most office complexes have keyed entries. Therefore, a discreet entrance may not be possible. It has also become more difficult to discreetly visit residential addresses as many residences have security guards who require identification and/or ask questions before allowing admittance.
Challenges for education include education confirmation, which cannot be conducted solely by name. It requires registration numbers, the year of graduation, and the name of the institution.
Regarding media articles, India typically provides less identifying information regarding persons. Therefore, it is difficult to corroborate if the individual named in an article is the subject of the investigation or just a name match. This is exacerbated by many Indian names being relatively common and names not being consistently reproduced (e.g., use/disuse of fathers’ names and use/disuse of initials). It is common in India to find an individual called “V. Singh” with no full name available. Some popular Indian names have multiple spellings, and media articles on the same person may use different spellings to identify the person. For example, the name “Rajiv” can also be spelled as “Rajeev” or “Rajib.” Media research is conducted on these variations to locate media articles for individuals.
Finally, search functions for Indian courts often require precise search terms. For instance, rather than being able to search by a party name, in many jurisdictions, you must specify the specific court location (rather than simply jurisdiction and level), the party, the year, and the case type. This results in legal and criminal research being a very manual process of searching each possible combination of elements.
General Counsel for a Medical Device manufacturer contacted Kreller after receiving an email from an individual purporting to be a surgeon who had been offered bribes through a client's distributor in exchange for prescribing the client’s devices.
Kreller researched the identity of the surgeon who reportedly sent the email and the email address used to send the allegation. Kreller investigated the sender’s identity and found inconsistencies, including a poorly constructed profile and typos in the email. The alleged surgeon in India denied the accusations and suggested it was a common tactic by rival companies. The investigation led the client to conclude the allegations were unfounded, saving them time and resources.
A well-known casual restaurant franchisor engaged Kreller to conduct a routine background investigation into a potential master franchise in New Delhi. The investigation found no red flags in media, courts, or local police queries, registration was verified, and licensing agreements with other franchise companies existed. However, after reporting Kreller’s findings to the prospect, they told our client they also represented at least two additional concepts that would prevent them from engaging with our client.
India can present several challenges from a due diligence perspective: weak corporate governance, increased security concerns, and specific search requirements to access/verify data. However, it’s an extremely attractive market if approached correctly. By proactively researching a potential engagement, you can develop a meaningful relationship with a qualified partner in an explosive growth market.
The general counsel for a medical device manufacturer contacted Kreller after receiving an email from an individual purporting to be a surgeon offering bribes through a client distributor in exchange for prescribing the client’s devices. Due to bribery and schemes, the situation raised concerns, causing the Kreller team to conduct medical device fraud investigations.
Kreller was hired to conduct routine background investigations into a potential master franchise in New Delhi. No red flags were found in media, court records, or local police queries, registration was verified, and licensing agreements with other franchise companies existed.
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Our team is comprised of highly experienced due diligence consultants, investigators and business analysts around the world.
Kreller investigators bring diverse backgrounds and global perspective and experience, and detail-oriented mindset to their work. Our blog series highlighting employee expertise and insight continues with this recent conversation with Senior Analyst of Special Investigations, Zack DeGeorge.
Due diligence is the background research and analysis that informs business decisions like investments, partnerships, mergers, acquisitions, or sales.
Director-Partner Engagement, Former FBI Senior Executive, Intelligence Analysis, and Analytical Tradecraft Expert
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