Situation
Suspect vendor kickbacks or procurement fraud?
Procurement fraud usually hides in plain sight, in vendor masters, purchase orders and inflated invoices. We combine data analytics on your procure-to-pay records with background checks on vendors and discreet enquiries to identify collusion, quantify losses and close the gaps.
Warning signs
Signs you need an independent investigation
- A vendor that wins repeatedly despite higher prices
- Vendors sharing addresses, phone numbers or bank accounts with employees
- Split purchase orders just below approval limits
- Rising costs or unexplained inventory variances
- One person controlling vendor onboarding, ordering and approval
Act quickly, act carefully
What to do in the first 48 hours
- Step 01
Freeze changes quietly
Restrict changes to the vendor master and payment details for the vendors concerned.
- Step 02
Preserve procure-to-pay data
Extract purchase orders, invoices, approvals and payment records for the relevant period.
- Step 03
Avoid tipping off
Keep enquiries confidential until the facts are clearer.
- Step 04
Engage specialists
Forensic analytics and vendor due diligence work best in combination.
Our approach
How we investigate
- 01
Analytics on P2P data
Test for duplicate payments, split orders, related-party links and pricing anomalies.
- 02
Vendor due diligence
Verify vendor existence, ownership and links to employees.
- 03
Document review
Examine bids, approvals and delivery evidence for the flagged transactions.
- 04
Interviews and findings
Interview staff and present findings with quantified impact.
What you receive
- Procurement fraud report
- Red-flag vendor list
- Quantified overpayments
- Process and control redesign
Frequently asked questions
What is a kickback?
A kickback is an undisclosed payment or benefit given to an employee by a vendor in return for favourable treatment, such as winning contracts, inflated prices or approval of substandard goods.
Can data analytics detect procurement fraud?
Analytics are one of the most effective tools: matching vendor and employee data, testing for split orders and benchmarking prices often surface the transactions that warrant investigation.
Proof
Relevant case files
~₹5 Crundue benefit quantified
The CEO's Three Vendors
A subsidiary CEO routed a rural retail rollout through vendors fronted by his own associates. The money trail led back to him.
- Procurement reconstruction
- Corporate and statutory records
- Ground intelligence
- Funds-flow tracing
14 yrsundisclosed vendor relationship
Fourteen Years on Both Sides
For fourteen years, the man who approved a manufacturer's transporters was also its transporter.
- Digital forensics
- Relationship mapping
- Financial review
- Asset searches
₹12–18 Crpurchases invoiced through paper traders
Invoices Without Steel
A steel processor's purchases were invoiced through paper traders while the metal came from unbilled sources. The company was left facing tax-credit reversal and penalties.
- Supplier verification
- Goods movement reconciliation
- Funds-flow analysis
- Tax exposure assessment
Client names and identifying details are withheld to protect confidentiality. Specific references and client experiences can be shared on request, with the client’s consent.
Other situations
Facing something different?
- Received a whistleblower complaint?Investigate allegations independently, protect the whistleblower and give your board a defensible answer.
- Suspect fraud, embezzlement or financial misconduct?Establish what happened, who was involved and how much was lost, with evidence that stands up.
- Vetting a partner, vendor or acquisition target?Know who you are dealing with before you sign, invest or onboard: promoters, related parties and reputation.
- Need to trace hidden or diverted assets?Find assets that have been concealed, moved or held through others, and support their recovery.
- Facing a dispute that needs forensic evidence?Quantify losses, analyse the evidence and give expert opinion that stands up in court or arbitration.
- Digital evidence at risk, or data leaked?Preserve, recover and analyse emails, devices and cloud data so the evidence holds up when it is challenged.