Hitesh Patel

StoneTurn

London www.stoneturn.com

hpatel@stoneturn.com Tel: +44 207 898 3422

Biography

Hitesh Patel has three decades of cross-sector/cross-border experience in white-collar crime and regulatory non-compliance in support of civil, criminal or regulatory action. His work has included complex multi-jurisdictional matters relating to bribery and corruption, financial misrepresentation as well as fraud and misconduct, with which asset tracing and recovery has been an integral part. Hitesh was formerly a partner at KPMG Forensic and a board director of the UK’s Fraud Advisory Panel.

Insight, creativity, communication and sound judgement. Using their skills and experience, an asset recovery expert must quickly assess a complex and evolving situation, and implement an appropriately tailored and cost-effective approach to the process. Practitioners need to demonstrate to clients a range of skills, including research, analytical, technical and problem-solving skills.

In what ways do you think the pace of technological change will affect asset recovery proceedings in the next few years?

In an era of rapid technological developments, such as artificial intelligence (AI), it is possible to achieve far better outcomes in terms of speed, cost and accuracy, without much of the complexity historically associated with locating undisclosed assets, e.g., searching the entire web for evidence of relevant communications or asset ownership. Humans will still play a critical role, however, by embracing technology the likelihood of a successful outcome is significantly increased. With the growing reliance on collecting, analysing and managing digital information it is vital that data privacy/protection considerations form part of the approach adopted.

To what extent are the ramifications of covid-19 still affecting asset recovery?

The covid-19 pandemic presented individuals, businesses and enforcement agencies with extraordinary challenges – asset recovery was not immune to this crisis. Multinational efforts to recover stolen assets have been hampered. Administrative and operational inertia, particularly when dealing with crossborder government and enforcement agencies, have cost investigators vital time in recovering assets. The current economic headwinds and geopolitical tensions is creating significant financial pressure on many countries, with a likely adverse impact in reduced government spend on enforcement and asset recovery.

What did you find most challenging about entering practice as an asset recovery expert?

One of the key challenges for any asset recovery expert entering practice, is to give due consideration to costs vs. benefits, before embarking on an assignment. It can be a highly complex, prolonged and costly process. The decision to invest “good money” to recover the “bad money” is always a key part of the consideration. Additionally, the ever-increasing variety and volume of data, jurisdictional secrecy, cross-border transfer of documents, local legal nuances and the technology revolution all add to the complexity and excitement of achieving successful outcomes.

To what extent are civil remedies a more effective way of recovering assets than criminal remedies?

Civil remedies can be pursued without any criminal conviction. Whereas, in criminal cases, the burden of proof is on the prosecution to prove the case “beyond reasonable doubt”, in civil cases, the burden of proof is on the claimant to prove the case based “on a balance of probabilities”.

If the investigating authority can prove on a balance of probabilities that an asset was obtained via unlawful conduct, the High Court can issue a recovery order. These orders can remain in force for long periods while the investigation is undertaken and can thus prove to be a more expedient strategy to adopt.

Given the greater hurdles, time and expense associated with criminal redress, utilising insolvency related procedures in private civil actions can also be more pragmatic route to restitution, e.g., winding up orders or court-appointed liquidators/ receivers.

How have frauds become more sophisticated over the past five years, and how do you think they could evolve in the near future?

The global fraud landscape has changed significantly as the world has increasingly harnessed the digital revolution. Organised criminals are more sophisticated than ever in stealing funds and intellectual property. Targeted cyber-attacks is a growing menace ranging from malware, phishing, credential stuffing to cross-site scripting to name a few. The situation is further exacerbated due to the anonymity provided by the lack of regulation of cryptocurrencies, which are increasingly being used by criminals to facilitate the movement of illicit funds across borders.

Fraud is on the rise, and it seems that no individual or organisation is immune from this threat.

What are the key challenges that the next generation of asset recovery specialists face?

Globalisation has led to complex multijurisdictional business structures, whereas technological advances mean that the world is more integrated, and borders are becoming blurred. Funds can be transferred across borders in seconds, whereas it may take a skilled investigator several months to identify the flow of funds. Where fraud occurs, it is less likely that it will involve just one jurisdiction. As a result, asset recovery specialists will be faced with ever more complex investigations and having to navigate the evolving intrajurisdictional legal and enforcement challenges. Leveraging smart technology and a wider spectrum of disparate data sources to get greater visibility of the money trails will be key.

Where, in your opinion, does the future of the practice area lie?

With the current global economic instability and potential for another recession, we are likely to see increased instances of fraud, bribery and misconduct, as is usually the case in any downturn – the future of asset recovery looks busy. We are already seeing a rise in asset tracing and recovery engagements.

As international criminal activity becomes increasingly complex, asset recovery specialists will need to respond by fielding teams with a diverse range of skills and expertise, tailored to the needs of the matter (eg, law, forensic accounting, business intelligence, data analytics, cybercrime and cryptocurrency).

WWL says: The “excellent” Hitesh Patel gains considerable commendation for his sweeping knowledge of fraud investigations in a wide range of industries.