The Limassol Shell

Head of Financial Crime, mid-size commercial bank

Meridian Trust Bank is onboarding Limassol Trade Holdings, a new corporate client, and the relationship manager wants sign-off today. If this Cyprus trading company turns out to be a front for sanctioned Russian capital, the bank faces a regulator fine and the loss of its correspondent-banking lines. The Head of Financial Crime has one question and 24 hours to answer it: is this supplier a genuine business, or a shell?