Follow the Money: Investigating Shell Companies

Behind many major financial scandals, shell companies play a central role in hiding the true owners and enabling the flow of illicit funds. From international financial crimes to local corruption cases, complex financial schemes are frequently used to obscure who benefits from illegal activities. Understanding how to track and expose shell companies is essential for any journalist working on financial, political, or corporate investigations.
This GIJN webinar dives into the world of shell companies, exploring how investigative journalists can unravel these complex networks. Experts from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) have shared useful resources to help journalists navigate this challenging field, focusing both on the strategy of the reporting and the most relevant tips and tools.
Karrie Kehoe is ICIJ’s deputy head of data and research. She started working with ICIJ on the Fatal Extraction project in 2015 and joined as a full-time data journalist in 2018. Kehoe has worked on many of ICIJ’s investigations over the years including Pandora Papers, Uber Files, Ericsson List, Deforestation Inc., FinCEN Files, Solitary Voices, Implant Files, and the Mauritius Leaks.
Jan Strozyk is OCCRP’s chief data editor and co-leads OCCRP’s research and data team alongside Head of Research Karina Shedrofsky. He works closely with OCCRP’s editorial and the data teams, coordinating data analysis and working on data-driven investigations. Prior to joining OCCRP, Strozyk was a reporter with the German public news broadcaster NDR, where he worked on the Luxembourg Leaks, Panama Papers, Paradise Papers, FinCEN Files, and other cross-border investigations.
The moderator is Simon Bowers, investigations editor at Finance Uncovered. Based in London, he joined the organization in November 2020 after four years as European co-ordinator at the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). Before that he spent 19 years at the Guardian in the UK, where he was a senior reporter working on tax and financial investigations.
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The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations that support the training and sharing of information among investigative and data journalists-with special attention to those from repressive regimes and marginalized communities.
Our key activities include:
Providing resources and networking services to investigative journalists worldwide;
Publishing in multiple languages and on multiple platforms the latest tools, techniques and opportunities for those in the field;
Helping organize and promote regional and international training conferences and workshops;
Assisting in the formation and sustainability of journalism organizations involved in investigative reporting and data journalism around the world;
Supporting and promoting best practices in investigative and data journalism;
Supporting and promoting efforts to ensure free access to public documents and data worldwide.
Find more information on our website: gijn.org