Detect hidden transaction patterns, expose illicit cash flows, and leverage financial intelligence to dismantle modern slavery networks.
Human trafficking and forced labour are often viewed as human rights or criminal justice issues, yet they are also highly organized economic activities driven by financial gain. Behind every exploitation scheme lies a network of payments, recruitment arrangements, labour providers, intermediaries, and commercial relationships that generate and conceal illicit profits. For fraud examiners, investigators, compliance professionals, and auditors, understanding these financial indicators is becoming increasingly important as organizations face growing scrutiny over supply chains, labour practices, and third-party relationships.
While many trafficking operations operate outside traditional corporate environments, indicators of exploitation frequently emerge within legitimate business activities. Excessive recruitment fees, unusual payroll arrangements, labour broker dependencies, unexplained deductions, subcontracting structures, and irregular payment flows can all signal underlying risks that may otherwise remain hidden. Identifying these indicators requires investigators to look beyond conventional fraud schemes and understand the economic mechanisms that sustain labour exploitation.
This session examines the financial characteristics of human trafficking and forced labour operations and explores how fraud examiners can identify red flags through financial analysis, transaction reviews, vendor assessments, and investigative procedures. Participants will gain practical insight into the financial dimensions of exploitation and learn how financial intelligence can support the detection and prevention of modern slavery risks.
Key Topics Discussed:
The economics of human trafficking and forced labour
Financial incentives and criminal business models
Recruitment fees, debt bondage, and worker exploitation
Labour brokers, subcontractors, and intermediary risks
Payroll anomalies and wage-related red flags
Payment flows and transaction patterns associated with exploitation
Vendor due diligence and third-party risk assessment
Supply chain vulnerabilities and hidden labour risks
Financial records as sources of investigative intelligence
Integrating modern slavery indicators into fraud examinations
Governance, compliance, and reporting considerations
Lessons from real-world trafficking and forced labour cases
2 activities • 1 videos • duration: 1h 11m
Founder & CEO | The Mekong Club
Matthew Friedman is an international human trafficking expert with more than 30 years’ experience as a manager, program designer, evaluator, and frontline responder. He is currently Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Mekong Club, an organization of Hong Kong-based private sector business leaders who have joined forces to help fight human trafficking in Asia. Mr. Friedman was previously Regional Project Manager at the United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP) in Thailand, an inter-agency coordinating body that linked the United Nations system with governments and civil society groups in China, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Prior to this, he worked for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Thailand, Bangladesh, and Nepal where he designed and managed country and regional human trafficking programs. Mr. Friedman also offers regular technical advice to numerous governments and corporations working to eliminate slavery and is the author of twelve books.
