Based in India, Anand Mangnale operates the Democratic Impact Journalism Collective.

Prior to that, he joined the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project in 2021 as a regional editor for South Asia and oversees investigations into corporate fraud and government corruption and human rights abuses. Anand has worked on several investigations exposing corporate and government corruption, abuse of power, and government misinformation and fake news campaigns.

Prior to joining OCCRP, he co-founded and was a director at Our Democracy, an online crowdfunding platform promoting transparency and accountability in political funding in India. Anand has worked in media strategy, advocacy and human rights investigations. His work also focused on exposing corporate fraud, corruption and build grassroots media network. He also co-authored “The Drugged State of Punjab,” a book about the drug menace in the Indian state of Punjab.

Anand has a master’s degree in media, campaigning, and social change from the University of Westminster in London.

Andy is a partner at Han Kun's dispute resolution department, specializing in litigation and arbitration, cross border dispute resolution, fraud, asset tracing and recovery, foreign judgment and award enforcement, restructuring & insolvency, and in particular he has accumulated abundant experiences in handling corporate disputes as well as investment and financing disputes of private equity funds and assets management institutions.

In terms of international fraud, Andy is one of the few PRC lawyers widely recognized by the international legal community.  Over the years, he has represented Han Kun to author the China chapters for several international publications on fraud and asset recovery, including the Asset Tracing and Recovery Review, Chambers Global Practice Guides - International Fraud & Asset Tracing as well as the CDR Essential Intelligence: Fraud, Asset Tracing & Recovery, where Han Kun is the only law firm from China.

Andy has enormous knowledge and in-depth understanding in his specialized areas, and has represented a number of banks, companies and HNWIs from various jurisdictions and successfully traced and recovered their huge amount of defrauded funds. He is the sole China member of ICC FraudNet, an international network under the auspices of ICC Commercial Crime Services and comprising independent lawyers who are the leading civil asset recovery specialists in each country.

Andy is exceptional in terms of his dispute resolution services, owing to his keen insights into the business needs of his clients.  He maintains close communications with his clients and provides timely feedback, thus enabling his clients to fully understand all aspects of their cases and to make sure that the outcomes satisfy their business demands.  He is skilled in advising on both overall planning and detail-oriented strategies in commercial dispute resolution matters through his clear thinking and forward-looking analysis.  He is dedicated to protecting his clients' interests to the greatest extent through his deep legal knowledge and resourceful connections in China and worldwide.

Based on his distinguished performance in dispute resolution, Andy has been rated by The Legal 500 as a highly recommended dispute resolution lawyer in the Asia Pacific for 2019 and 2021.

Educational background

Andy obtained his LL.B. and LL.M. degrees from East China University of Political Science and Law and Fudan University Law School, respectively.

Practice qualification

Member of the PRC Bar

Working language

Chinese, English

Aubrey Belford is OCCRP’s lead editor for the Pacific. Aubrey specializes in leading large international collaborations that reveal the nexus between crime, corruption, disinformation, and politics. These include a 2019 investigation into efforts in Ukraine to influence the U.S. presidential election, an exposé that helped lead to that year’s impeachment scandal.

Aubrey has led investigations on topics including arms smuggling in the Balkans, tourism corruption in the Maldives, backchannel diplomacy in Turkey, dodgy European COVID contracts, the 2020 Beirut port explosion, and the growing influence of a Korean doomsday cult in Fiji.

Prior to joining OCCRP in 2016, Aubrey worked for nine years as a journalist in Southeast Asia for outlets including Reuters, The International New York Times, and Agence France-Presse.

Since establishing Rahman Ravelli in 2001, Aziz’s expertise in serious and white-collar crime has seen both his and the firm’s reputation rise dramatically. His ability to coordinate national, international and multi-agency defences has led to success in some of the most significant business crime cases of this century.

He has been recognised worldwide as one of the most capable legal experts regarding top-level, high-value commercial and financial disputes. His track record in cross-border asset recovery has also played a role in his rise to prominence.

Aziz's achievements have led to him being described as a “real genius”, “a Rolls-Royce performer’’ and “a powerhouse figure in white-collar crime – exceptionally knowledgeable, a fantastic strategist and a very well-respected leader’’ by The Legal 500; which keeps naming him as one of the elite solicitors in the UK. The 2025 edition of The Legal 500 says he is "a man of inexhaustible energy, commercial savvy and fundamentally sound legal judgment.''

The Chambers UK Guide has called him “a brilliant lawyer…phenomenally committed to his clients”, “an extremely impressive individual’’, “an exceptional and gifted lawyer of considerable experience’’ and consistently ranks him as a star individual in the UK. The 2025 edition of Chambers refers to him as "a dynamic powerhouse of a solicitor''.

Who's Who Legal (now known as the Lexology Index) ranks Aziz as a global leader and recommends him as an elite business crime defence lawyer for corporates.

Aziz's consistently high legal rankings and impressive reputation are due to his expertise in serious and corporate fraud, complex crime, bribery and corruption and compliance and regulatory matters. He is recognised as one of the most astute and accomplished litigators in large-scale commercial disputes where there is an element of corporate wrongdoing.

He also has in-depth experience of complex and high-stakes, cross-border arbitration; particularly cases where there are allegations of corruption or fraud, which can involve hundreds of millions of dollars and require urgent measures.

His skill in leading and managing legal teams, both here and overseas, through all stages of a case has been proven to produce the strongest bespoke defence for the corporates, executives and ultra-high net worth individuals that are his clients.

Aziz is known for leading the highest-level, most complex sanctions cases. He has advised and represented some of the biggest institutions on sanctions and sanctions-related litigation involving Russia and eastern Europe, Myanmar and other regions. His clients include corporate leaders, banks, PLC’s and other sizeable, international companies in sectors as diverse as engineering, power, chemicals, petroleum and nanotechnology.

His dealings with the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the National Crime Agency (NCA), the City of London Police, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and international bodies such as the FBI, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), OLAF, Interpol and police and anti-corruption agencies around the world have led to consistent success in major, high-profile fraud and business crime cases here and abroad.

Aziz's ability to analyse complex material swiftly and work tactically and tenaciously for clients has seen him be the first to take certain types of cases to the highest possible UK and European courts. It has also made him the first choice for many senior business individuals who want an internal investigation conducted at their company.

From initial meetings with clients, Aziz is adept at deciding the best approach to take, the most suitable personnel for a case and the very best use of the firm’s experience and expertise to secure success. This has led to him becoming the logical choice for corporates who are looking to obtain a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) rather than face a criminal prosecution.

Cherrin is Of Counsel in Maples and Calder’s Dispute Resolution & Insolvency team in the Maples Group’s Singapore office. She has over a decade of experience in commercial litigation and dispute resolution and is qualified in Singapore, England & Wales and the British Virgin Islands. She specialises in cross-border shareholder and partnership disputes, take-private fair value appraisal litigation, and insolvency related disputes. She regularly advises on issues concerning shareholder remedies and derivative claims, interim applications in aid of foreign proceedings including worldwide freezing injunctions, and the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments and arbitral awards.

Cherrin also has experience advising on contentious fund and corporate matters including breaches of constitutional documents, shareholder and subscription agreements, suspension of redemption requests and other contentious issues at board or shareholder meetings.

Cherrin joined Maples and Calder in 2017. Prior to that, she was a senior associate at a top tier disputes law firm in Singapore where she regularly attended court and worked alongside senior counsels on complex, bilingual litigation and arbitrations, and other senior partners on multi-jurisdictional advisory work on regulatory matters. Apart from complex commercial litigation, Cherrin has a keen interest in international arbitration and is an accredited member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (MCIArb).

Chris is the founder of the law firm Slateford, specialised in handling serious reputation issues and crises. They regularly advise on contentious allegations about the performance of businesses, both for listed entities whose shares are shorted, and for investment businesses in dispute about the positions they have taken. Their work includes projects with clients from China, India, Malaysia, DR Congo and the Middle East amongst others, particularly focussed on allegations of wrongdoing and restrictions on their freedom to operate.

With 16+ years’ experience in threat assessment, crisis management, continuity of operations, investigations, security systems monitoring, physical security, and close personal protection; I have become a highly skilled and knowledgeable manager and security professional. I have a proven track record of directing security operations, developing organizational infrastructure, and successfully implementing long-/short-term strategies. Good communications and a well-trained, motivated team are important to achieving positive outcomes and exceeding organizational goals. I expertly assess communication needs and deliver effective materials and impactful presentations. I believe in building strong professional relationship with management, teams and other stakeholder to encourage a culture of collaboration, as well as motivating, coaching, training, and leading high-performing teams. My areas of expertise include:

Project Management
Antiterrorism
Emergency Procedures
Enforcement Administration
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
Corporate-level security protection
Relocation
Executive Protection Practices
Risk Mitigation and threat deterrence
Communications
Team Building & Training
Policy Development

Described by clients as a “formidable force”, “our go-to guy”, and “good when you need someone to fight in your corner”, Danny has a wealth of experience, commercial acumen, and strategic wisdom in his specialist areas of complex international commercial and financial disputes, fraud, and investigations.  He has led multiple high-stakes cross-border disputes and investigations, across a multitude of industries, and is regularly called upon by financial institutions, private investment funds, and state-owned enterprises to act.  Among Danny’s cases acting for liquidators of a trading company in claims arising from the misappropriation of more than $1 billion dispersed across more than 40 companies, acting for the liquidators of BSI Bank and a US investment bank in relation to investigations into alleged laundering and dissipation of some $1 billion purportedly belonging to the Malaysian state-owned company 1MBD, and acting in claims for fraud and corruption brought by various Mongolian state-owned entities against a former Prime Minister and his alleged associates.  More recently, Danny has been a pioneer in the blockchain and digital assets space, having led the team that successfully prosecuted the first cryptocurrency claim before the Singapore International Commercial Court.

Danny graduated from the National University of Singapore and is admitted to the Singapore Bar as well as the Rolls of Solicitors of the High Courts of Hong Kong and England and Wales.

Investigative financial journalist David Marchant owns and operates Florida-domiciled OffshoreAlert, a news, documents, and conference-organizing company that specializes in financial intelligence and investigations, with an emphasis on high-value, cross-border finance conducted in high-confidentiality offshore and onshore jurisdictions.

Since it was launched in 1997, OffshoreAlert has exposed more than 175 investment frauds and money laundering schemes while they were in progress, contributing to their early collapse, and helped law enforcement, regulators, and asset recovery specialists hold those responsible accountable for their actions.

Fraudsters have sued Marchant and OffshoreAlert for defamation in Canada, Cayman Islands, England, Grenada, Panama, and the United States, with several plaintiffs subsequently going to prison, including one for 17 years.

OffshoreAlert is regularly referenced in news articles, books, government reports, TV programs, and movie documentaries about serious financial crime.

Erick Gunawan is the head of BRG’s Cyber Forensics and eDiscovery practice in Asia–Pacific. He has over 20 years of experience in computer forensics, eDiscovery, compliance investigations, crypto tracing and investigations, dawn raid readiness, and incident response. He has managed document reviews for both contentious and non-contentious matters.

Throughout his career, Mr. Gunawan has managed hundreds of large-scale computer forensics, eDiscovery and document review matters in sectors including finance, construction, life sciences, and energy. He has provided forensic consultancy services regarding financial and economic issues in complex litigation and disputes cases.

Mr. Gunawan is a testifying expert in the area of computer forensics and eDiscovery. He is consistently recognised by Who’s Who Legal in its Data guide as a Thought Leader and its Investigations guide.

Erin West is a national leader in the investigation and prosecution of cryptocurrency crimes. She is the Founder of Operation Shamrock, an organization dedicated to combating cyber-enabled crimes like pig butchering. Ms West has special expertise in high tech, hate crimes and search and seizure. Her mission is to disrupt the wave of romance/investment scams known as pig butchering.

Previously, Ms West spent 24 years as a Deputy District Attorney in Santa Clara County, California, USA. She was assigned as the prosecutor to the REACT task force, a multi-agency high tech team made up of law enforcement from local and federal agencies. Along with the agents at REACT, Ms West was one of the first nationwide to investigate and prosecute SIM-swapping, resulting in millions of dollars of losses of cryptocurrency to both individuals and businesses.

George Gwee is a Director in the Restructuring practice, based in Singapore. George leverages over seven years of experience and specializes in pre-financing due diligence, complex debt workouts and receivership appointments. He has extensive experience in large-scale engagements across a range of industries including cryptocurrency, fitness, oil and gas and mining, and in both private and court-driven restructurings and enforcements. George leads Kroll’s Singapore office’s focus on cryptocurrency in a restructuring and insolvency context.

George’s notable cryptocurrency-related assignments at Kroll include an Independent Financial Advisor role in respect of the $325 million restructuring of Defi Payments Pte. Ltd., the operator of Vauld, a cryptocurrency exchange and lending platform, in the first effective Singapore Scheme of Arrangement involving a large global retail creditor base (~150,000), and a creditor committee role in a $230 million Court-ordered liquidation for an Estonian cryptocurrency lending platform. George concurrently is involved in arbitration proceedings against a separate cryptocurrency yield platform over $170 million of unpaid cryptocurrency liabilities pursuant to a loan agreement, and an asset recovery process in India to unfreeze over $20 million of assets frozen on allegations of money laundering activity carried out by a third party over a client’s cryptocurrency network.

Some of George’s notable non-cryptocurrency related assignments at Kroll include an Independent Financial Advisor role in respect of the $680 million restructuring of KrisEnergy Limited and subsequently a pre-financing due diligence and Monitoring Accountant role for $87 million of project financing. George has been involved in receivership enforcements pursuant to $287 million of secured facilities over oil and gas assets in Southeast Asia, and $170 million of secured facilities over a subsea cable network in Asia. Lastly, George has been involved in the private restructuring of a $200 million syndicated facility held by one of the largest gym fitness chains in Southeast Asia.

George has an interest in the complexities of restructuring and insolvency work in relation to blockchain and cryptocurrency technology and has spoken at the Crypto Fraud and Asset Recovery (CFAAR) chapter in Singapore and the Singapore Insolvency Conference on topics such as the cryptocurrency Schemes of Arrangement in Singapore and the role of blockchain as a disruptor in the restructuring and insolvency space.

George holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration (Finance) from the National University of Singapore and is a Member of the Turnaround Management Association (Singapore Chapter).

Gerard’s main areas of practice include fraud and asset recovery (including crypto assets), commercial disputes, financial services law and regulation. Gerard assist clients with international trade and cross border matters, particularly matters in China and Thailand. Some of the recent reported judgments where Gerard had acted as lead counsel include Chen Mingxing and others v Zhang Jian and others [2021] SGHC 03, Simran Bedi v Montgomery, Mark A [2022] SGHC 67, Wong Leng Si Rachel v Wu Su Han Olivia [2022] SGHC 151 and Re Hodlnaut Pte Ltd [2022] SGHC 209. Gerard has also co-authored the annotations of three statutes, namely the Hire-Purchase Act, the Sale of Goods (United Nations Convention) Act and Terrorism (Suppression of Financing) Act. These annotations have been published under the Annotated Laws of Singapore by LexisNexis Singapore.

Gerard is frequently instructed on complex matters by reputable organisations and regularly argues before the Singapore Courts as lead counsel. In particular, Gerard acted for 154 Claimants in a representative action where the Claimants are claiming approximately S$47 million in a multi-jurisdictional scam. Gerard had successfully argued for a world-wide Mareva Injunction order against eighteen defendants in the said suit.

Clients of Gerard have stated that “he has an eye for detail”, “is technically and commercially astute” and “can grasp complex industry practices quickly”.

In 2020, Gerard was shortlisted as a Finalist in the Asian Legal Business Southeast Asia Law Awards for the category of Young Lawyer of the Year and also featured as one of Singapore’s 21 Most Influential Lawyers Aged 40 and Under, by the Singapore Business Review in 2020. In 2021, Gerard was recognised by Asian Legal Business as one of Asia’s 40 Under 40 Lawyers. The aforesaid list featured the region’s best lawyers under the age of 40. The lawyers on the list were selected from over 400 applicants from international and domestic firms across 10 jurisdictions: Singapore, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand & Vietnam. The lawyers were selected based on the quality and complexity of their work, recommendations from clients and colleagues, and their potential for future growth.

Gerard is very passionate about serving the community and regularly takes on matters on a pro bono basis with the support of the firm.

Heidi is the SVP Head of Special Operations at Wave Digital Assets, an SEC-registered investment firm specializing in digital assets, where she supports Web3 protocols, crypto bankruptcies, and government agencies with crypto exposure. She is a member of  numerous State blockchain initiatives, as well as the Digital Dollar Project. Previously, she served as President of GBBC Giving, empowering underserved communities with blockchain access, and co-founded PoA, a platform equipping artists with digital tools. Heidi played a key role in launching Blockchain@UCLA and the Los Angeles Blockchain Lab, initiatives that advanced blockchain education and policy, including programs supporting women worldwide, such as in Afghanistan. She has served on advisory boards including the VanEck Digital Assets Initiative at USC, Innovate@UCLA, and the Female Advisory Board for Lamborghini, and was an Honorary Co-chair of the U.S. Trade Missions Blockchain initiative for the U.S. Department of Commerce. A sought-after Web3 educator, she has provided insights to leading firms like Lionsgate Entertainment and Sony. Among her proudest achievements, she helped multiple Afghan women and their families flee the Taliban using crypto. Prior to her blockchain work, Heidi specialized in business transformation, scaling distressed assets into national firms and leading sales teams for companies such as AIG. She holds an MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management.

A highly motivated person with a keen interest in technology and business. Consistently working to the highest professional standards drawing on experience and a wide range of technical expertise. Additionally an effective team player with excellent communication and organizational skills combined with a desire to succeed. A multidisciplinary digital forensic scientist, fraud examiner, and information security practitioner specializing in the prevention, detection, and investigation of cyber crime, white-collar crime, and corruption. Predisposed to procedural and methodological approaches to problem solving and analysis.

Jack specialises in providing investigative support to cross jurisdictional disputes, complex money laundering and fraud matters.  Jack is a member of the Mintz Group’s international asset tracing unit that specialises in tracing assets around the world and has helped his clients enforce judgements in a number of significant cases during his sixteen years living in Southeast Asia.  Jack and the Mintz Group have particular expertise in areas they have found critical to asset tracing and recovery including shipping, real estate, aircraft as well as computer forensics.  Jack has worked extensively looking at money laundering issues in a number of jurisdictions in Asia, with a strong focus on Myanmar, Indonesia and Malaysia as well as a number of offshore jurisdictions in both Asia and the Caribbean.

Jess helps disruptive clients from around the world strengthen their response to serious issues that impact their reputation.

Her work has included acting for the largest companies in the world in some of their most difficult and controversial matters, through to supporting victims of crime in protecting their interests against the actions of wrongdoers.

She has been recognised in a litany of awards, including Young Achiever in the Asian Woman of Achievement Awards and Associate of the Year in the Citywealth Future Leaders Awards.

She takes a particular interest in how the law needs to develop to match societal trends around environmental, social and governance issues, and how responses to serious issues need to adapt to changing expectations.

Her corporate work draws on experience of working on City research desks and understanding the drivers of serious issues and how stakeholder views are impacted.

She writes for CityAM on reputation issues and has frequently spoken in broadcast media interviews, and is featured in an upcoming documentary, about the impact of intimate image abuse. She is well-known for her work representing professional footballer Leigh Nicol in fighting those who misuse images.

Jess leads our work around intimate image abuse and supporting victims of crime, which provides reputation law tools to those who would not normally have access to elite legal representation. She frequently advises corporates and individuals on the impact of crime and reputation, ensuring that the illicit acts of third parties do not detrimentally affect their reputation.

Jess has worked across a variety of matters providing her expertise to help achieve the best results for clients.

Recent work includes:

- Advising and litigating for a multinational food retailer which was the subject of a complex blackmail plot, utilizing interim non disclosure injunctions and s11 Contempt of Court Orders in criminal proceedings

- Advising a major cryptocurrency exchange platform and its CEO on defamatory allegations and the publication of confidential information from international broadsheet press

- Advising a FTSE100 company on a blackmail threat made to its CEO’s family

- Advising a number of England international and premier league footballers on privacy risks and engaging in pre-publication correspondence

- Carrying out an internal investigation into the broadcast of a TV show produced that was contrary to the OFCOM code and leading subsequent pre-action correspondence.

- Advising the board and key individuals of various FTSE 100 companies on privacy and security risks that could impact their reputation.

- Advising various corporate clients on how to combat an online impersonation campaign affecting their reputation

- Advising corporate clients on the reputational consequences following an employee conduct issue, including an international banking organization and an international PR group

- Using the Norwich Pharmacal jurisdiction to reveal an astroturfing campaign by a competitor, using the same jurisdiction to uncover the identity of an impersonation scheme intended to obtain confidential information concerning a client

- Work on pre-publication correspondence matters relating to BBC Panorama, providing a successful result for both, ensuring that the narrative was fair and accurate

- Advising a middle eastern royal family member on the reputational issues surrounding a potentially high profile divorce

Joe is a non-lawyer Partner and the Head of Cyber Risk and Complex Investigations, the cybersecurity and investigations practice at Mishcon. Joe works across a varied practice of risk management issues from cyber incidents to investigations and asset tracing. He works with clients who need broad risk and crisis management expertise, leaning heavily on his experience as a cyber security specialist.

He has helped clients trace assets and people, as well as investigating frauds, confidential data theft and conducting due diligence. His experience ranges from crypto-currency tracing, asset recovery investigations or major cyber incidents, combined with deep technology and risk management skills. Joe oversees the firm's services in Cyber Security, Incident Response and Digital Investigations, with a team of non-lawyer specialists ranging from investigators to forensic accountants and security consultants.

He has a wide range of expertise in cyber risk and security, data protection, and resilience, and first-hand experience with some of the UK’s largest cyber incidents. Joe is a specialist at the nexus of cyber-security issues and legal responses and is the Head Consultant for our NCSC accredited services.

Joe is part of the MdR cryptocurrency investigations and recovery service. He can provide expert advice on the issues surrounding financial cyber crime and cryptocurrency frauds. He has the Chainalysis Ethereum Investigations Certification (CEIC), Chainalysis Investigation Specialist Certification (CISC) and Chainalysis Reactor Certification (CRC) credentials.

Joe is a member of Association of British Investigators and the Council of International Investigators.

Jonas is the head director of Athena Intelligence, a private intelligence firm based in Geneva and Shanghai, with a proven track of expertise in tracing and assisting in the recovery of hidden assets. Jonas has a master of arts in world governance with a focus on Internet Governance of the University of Lucerne in Switzerland. Prior to founding Athena Intelligence, he worked in the Geneva office of a multinational intelligence firm. Given his thorough knowledge of the industry, he leads the investigation, due diligence and case selection process at Liti Capital.

Jonathan is Managing Director in the Restructuring practice, based in Kroll’s Hong Kong office. Jonathan has over 12 years of experience in court liquidations, receiverships, enforcement proceedings associated with liquidations and receiverships, financial and operational restructurings, individual bankruptcies, preparation of Form E, Duxbury calculations and expert reports in divorce proceedings, valuation and investigation of matrimonial assets and judicial management in Singapore.

Joseph Rome, counsel at Sequor Law, focuses his practice on international arbitration and litigation, judgment and arbitral award collection, asset recovery, corruption and proceeds of crime recovery, and financial fraud.

Prior to joining Sequor Law, Joseph was an “A” level prosecutor for the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office focusing primarily on attempted murders, gun crimes, and serious sexual assaults from the investigation stage through trial. He was also a member of the Police Accountability and Integrity Task Force, Hate Crimes Unit, and Traffic Homicide Unit.

Joseph previously worked for two large, international law firms in New York and Miami. He has represented international corporations and high-net-worth individuals in a broad range of high-stakes litigation and arbitration matters.

Joseph earned his Juris Doctorate from New York University School of Law. During law school, he was a Jessup International Moot Court member, an editor of the Journal of International Law & Politics, and did externships with both the Orleans Public Defenders and the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York. He also did a summer fellowship at the United Nations International Law Commission in Geneva, where he drafted speeches and statements for the Japanese representative. Joseph also holds a masters degree in East Asian history.

Favorite Quote 

“The truth grows thinner and does not break, and always rides on lies like oil on water.”

Languages:

• English


• Spanish


• Mandarin


• Japanese

Kowit Somwaiya is the Founder and Managing Partner of LawPlus Ltd. in Thailand and LawPlus Myanmar Ltd. in Myanmar.  He has over 30 years of experience on intellectual property, banking, commercial, corporate and M&A, FDI, employment, investment promotion, IT, telecoms, data privacy, arbitration, litigation, probate and inheritance.  He is admitted to practice law in Thailand.

Kowit has been recently appointed to the Board of Directors of Meritas, the global network of business law firms (2024 – 2027).  He is a member of the Lawyers Council of Thailand and the Thai Bar Association.  He has held key leadership positions at the Intellectual Property Association of Thailand (Director 2009-2016, Vice President 2017-2019),  the Asian Patent Attorneys Association (Co-Chair of the Emerging IP Rights Committee 2013-2015), and the International Trademark Association - INTA (member of the Board of Directors 2018-2020, Co-Chair of the Global Advisory Council-Asia Pacific 2016-2017, Chair of the Harmonization of Trademark Law and Practice Committee 2016-2017, and Chair of the Anti-Counterfeiting Committee East Asia and Pacific Sub-committee 2014-2015).

Throughout his career, Kowit has been consistently recognized, recommended and ranked as rising star, expert and leader by global survey and ranking institutions and publications, such as the Legal 500, the Chambers & Partners, the Asia Business Journal, the Asia Law Magazine, the WIPR, the IAM Patent, to name a few.

Highlighting his ongoing excellence, the Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2020-2024 recommended him for corporate and M&A and intellectual property.  The Who’s Who Legal: Telecoms, Media & Entertainment 2024 recommended him as one of the world’s leading practitioners.  The Asia IP 2024 named him as one of the 2024 IP Experts in Thailand. The Asia Business Law Journal selected him as one of The A-List Lawyers in Thailand for 2023.

Michael Popkin is a partner in Mourant's litigation practice in Hong Kong. He advises on all aspects of offshore disputes and distressed situations, including applications for urgent injunctive or other relief.  He is particularly experienced in disputes relating to investment funds and significant financial transactions and disputes between stakeholders.  He regularly acts for insolvency practitioners, creditors, directors and directors’ committees, fund managers and administrators, trustees, investors and major shareholders or beneficiaries. Most of the matters he works on are multi-jurisdictional in scope where he coordinates with legal and counsel teams across jurisdictions worldwide.

Before joining Mourant in 2022, Michael worked in another offshore law firm in Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands for six years. Prior to that he practised for 14 years in the litigation and dispute resolution practice of a large onshore Australian firm in Sydney, Australia, and for 10 years with leading law firms in Bangkok, Thailand and Phnom Penh, Cambodia. During the course of his career, he has worked on matters involving transactions in most jurisdictions in Asia.

Michael is registered as a foreign lawyer in Hong Kong and has been admitted to practise in the Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, England and Wales, New South Wales, Australia (currently non-practising) and in New York, USA (currently non-practising).

He is recognised in the Legal 500 Caribbean 2025, Legal 500 Asia-Pacific 2025, and Chambers Asia Pacific 2025 for offshore dispute resolution.

Michelle Gon is a senior attorney with more than three decades of experience in the Greater China markets. She helps multinational clients deal with knotty and challenging legal issues, having developed a highly-regarded practice focused on cross-border compliance and regulatory matters.

Michelle is a partner of Han Kun Law Offices, based in Shanghai. She focuses her practice on representing clients in complicated and challenging compliance and regulatory matters, including anti-corruption, unfair competition, anti-monopoly, anti-fraud, export control and trade sanction areas. Well respected for her ability to provide clients with her personal devotion and offering practical advice on solving complex legal issues.

Most of Michelle’s clients are leading MNCs doing business in China, or large, China-based MNCs doing business globally, across a wide range of sectors, including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, life sciences, healthcare, agriculture, food-related products, wine and spirits, hospitality, cruise lines, manufacturing, IT and high tech. Before joining Han Kun, Michelle held senior roles at other leading international law firms. She also formerly served as the Chief Legal Officer/Vice President of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (“SMIC”), and an International Attorney for McDonald’s Corporation, headquartered in Illinois.

Morgan is S-RM’s Asia Pacific Head. Leading the business since 2019, Morgan has management oversight for S-RM's Hong Kong, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur offices and our key regional business lines. He has undertaken investigative due diligence project work throughout all major APAC jurisdictions and across all sectors, ranging from financial services to extractives, technology, energy, and infrastructure. He has a client relationship focus on private equity groups, investment banks, and law firms. Morgan has been ranked Band 1 by Chambers & Partners as an expert in investigative due diligence two years running (2023 & 2024), with one client stating that “Morgan has exceptional intellect and a keen sense of geopolitics in the [APAC] region".  Morgan has a BA from the University of York, and an MA and PhD in Russian Philosophy from University College London. He speaks Russian, Mandarin, and Cantonese. Recognised as a subject matter expert on the interconnections between corporate intelligence and cybersecurity, Morgan is frequently invited to participate in panels and expert discussions to share insights and strategies for addressing corporate risks.

Pamela Qiu leads the South-East Asia business at Control Risks. Pamela is responsible for the development of the business in the region, managing key client relationships and partnerships, and advising senior business leaders on areas of risk that impact their operations. She has 20 years of experience working in public policy, consulting, and professional services.

Before joining Control Risks, Pamela was Network Director at The Economist Group, where she led its CEO insight and intelligence service in South-East Asia, and drove its thought leadership agenda and client engagement programme in the region. Prior to that, Pamela worked at the Singapore Ministry of Finance and designed policies that were featured in the Singapore Budget.

Pamela is currently a Board Member at the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and a Master’s degree in Development Studies, both from the London School of Economics (LSE).

Saket Bhartia is a managing director in the Investigations, Diligence and Compliance practice, based in Singapore. Bhartia leverages more than 20 years of experience assisting clients in investigating financial statement fraud, siphoning of funds, embezzlement, asset misappropriation, bribery and corruption issues, regulatory non-compliance, code of conduct violations, supply chain leakages and ethics violations.

Prior to joining Kroll, Bhartia served as an Associate Partner, Forensic & Integrity Services at a big 4 firm in Singapore where he assisted clients with financial/bribery/corruption/code of conduct/supply chain investigations. He also has extensive experience working on compliance and regulatory matters related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the UK Bribery Act (UKBA) and has helped several global and local clients set strong compliance frameworks, including performing fraud risk assessments, data analytics etc.

Early in his career, Saket was the executive director at a Big 4 firm in India, where he established and led the Bangalore, India Forensics team. During this time, he led a variety of high-profile, complex investigations, working closely with regulators and law enforcement. He also helped several multinational and Indian companies conduct fraud and corruption risk assessments, set up effective anti-corruption frameworks and fraud monitoring systems, and perform pre transaction investigative due diligence.

In addition, Saket has held global roles at Capgemini and Hewlett Packard where he worked on projects relating to Sarbanes Oxley (SOX), executed transformation projects and reviewed internal control frameworks for clients around the world.

Qualifications

• Chartered Accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India


• Anti-Bribery Management System/ISO 37001 - Lead Auditor


• Certified Fraud Examiner from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, USA


• Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional from the Compliance Certification Board, USA


• Certified Internal Auditor from the Institute of Internal Auditors, USA

Stephen Olson is a Visiting Senior Fellow at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute and a Non-Resident Fellow and Visiting Lecturer at the Yeutter Institute of International Trade. Olson is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Futures Council on Trade and co-leads a joint workstream on geopolitics and trade. He began his career in Washington, D.C. as a U.S. trade negotiator.

With nearly two decades of experience in financial due diligence, M&A advisory, audit, and emerging technologies, I help businesses navigate complex financial, regulatory, and operational challenges. In my role as a director in transaction advisory at Grant Thornton Thailand, I support buy-side and sell-side transactions, conduct financial due diligence, assess business plans and growth prospects, and evaluate financial performance to support valuation and pricing decisions. My work spans blockchain & digital assets, technology, financial services, digital media, manufacturing, and professional services.

I have been at the forefront of blockchain and digital asset advisory, assisting global cryptocurrency exchanges, asset managers, and fintech companies with financial due diligence, regulatory compliance, and digital finance transformation. I specialize in evaluating large regulated digital asset service providers, assessing IT risks in critical infrastructure, implementing self-custody solutions, and analyzing business models across DeFi and CeFi platforms. Additionally, I leverage software tools and automation to assess blockchain-related risks, verify the existence and ownership of digital assets, trace transactions, and analyze security vulnerabilities.

I have led audit and advisory engagements for multinational corporations, SEC registrants, and digital asset firms across the U.S., Japan, Southeast Asia, and Europe. My experience includes PCAOB and SEC-regulated audits, SOX 404 compliance, financial reporting, and IFRS/US GAAP alignment. Before transitioning to advisory, I built Grant Thornton Thailand’s Digital Asset Audit Team, designing the firm’s blockchain audit methodology and IT controls framework, positioning it as a leader in Thailand’s cryptocurrency industry.

I’m always open to collaborating, networking, and discussing opportunities in finance transformation, transaction advisory, and digital assets. Let’s connect!

Steven Westervelt is a Managing Director and the head of the firm’s Singapore office. His background in investigations and advisory runs deep. He has managed significant multi-jurisdictional due diligence investigations and other complex matters. Steven works with the world's top law firms, executive leadership teams of public companies, and investment directors of the largest private equity firms. Earlier in his career, he advised US and foreign governments on post-crisis governance matters in Southwest and South Asia. Steven has spent almost his entire career in Asia and has been based in Singapore for the past decade.

Prior to joining Nardello & Co., Steven was head of the Singapore office for a boutique investigations firm, where he oversaw business strategy and client management. Before that, he spent several years working for Control Risks’ Southeast Asia practice, where he was responsible for an array of complex investigations.

Stuart D’Addona is a partner in Campbells’ Litigation, Insolvency & Restructuring Group where he advises investment funds, banks, publicly listed companies, high net worth individuals and professional services firms in relation to a wide range of matters arising under Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands law.

Stuart specialises in shareholder disputes, corporate governance disputes, fraud and asset tracing, and obtaining urgent injunctive relief.  He also acts for clients in contentious and non-contentious insolvency matters, advising debtor companies, insolvency practitioners and creditors and other stakeholders.  He understands the issues which are often encountered by private clients in Asia and has strong experience advising such clients in relation to the contentious aspects of family and private wealth.

Tim is a Partner in our Restructuring and Insolvency Practice having joined the firm as a Trainee Solicitor in 2012 and admitted as a solicitor in 2014. Tim’s focus is on restructuring and insolvency matters, with a particular focus on contentious cases. He regularly advises insolvency office-holders (including the ‘Big Four’ accounting firms and other prominent accounting firms with an insolvency practice) and corporate clients on all aspects of restructuring and insolvency issues including schemes of arrangement, recovery of assets in insolvency estates (in particular pursuing and defending transaction avoidance claims), cross-border insolvency issues such as recognition of foreign appointments and foreign restructuring processes in Hong Kong, examination of persons capable of assisting insolvency office-holders, all aspects of enforcement; debt recovery matters and a wide range of court applications in relation to bankruptcies, liquidations and applications concerning insolvency office-holders’ remuneration and other administrative matters.

Tim has a particular interest in schemes of arrangement with a cross-border element having acted on the Kaisa and the Burwill schemes. He also advises on contentious scheme matters and successfully opposed the sanctioning of the Century Sun scheme. That aside, Tim focuses on contentious work and regularly appears in the Companies Court and Bankruptcy Court.

Additionally, Tim advises in relation to general commercial litigation matters including contractual disputes and banking litigation matters (such as debt recovery and security enforcement). Tim has extensive experience in trial work having conducted several High Court trials.

Tim completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Liverpool (Bachelor of Arts in History and Law) and obtained a Juris Doctor degree and a Postgraduate Certificate in Laws from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Tim is fluent in English and Cantonese.

Troy Greig is a Partner in our Restructuring and Insolvency department whose practice focuses on contentious matters with considerable expertise in commercial and insolvency-related litigation, fraud and regulatory work. He is recognised as a key member of the team in the Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2021 ranking of Hong Kong restructuring and insolvency lawyers.

Troy has broad experience advising on all aspects of cross-border winding-up proceedings, bankruptcy, debt restructuring, on-going management and trading of businesses, asset marketing and sale, claims against and on behalf of the distressed estate. Troy advises clients in distressed and insolvent situations on the selection of appropriate regime and the strategic appointment of officeholders to extract maximum value. He has also acted for officeholders including liquidators, administrators and receivers.

Troy’s broad litigation practice covers a wide range of matters. He advises on banking and finance, intellectual property and shareholders disputes, professional indemnity, D&O, product liability and business interruption. He has also advised on contempt of court matters.

Troy advises on high value fraud matters involving debt recovery, asset tracing and the enforcement of judgments and pre-emptive actions such as injunctions and court appointed receivers. As part of the cross-border nature of Troy’s practice, he is experienced in conducting litigation in other jurisdictions by instructing local and offshore firms as lead counsel.

Troy regularly advises on regulatory and compliance investigations and represents defendants in contested hearings and prosecutions. This includes working with the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), Insurance Authority (IA); Privacy Commission for Personal Data (PCPD), and the Inland Revenue and Labour Departments. Troy also advises clients on SFC and IA investigations including the review of historical records and advises on IRD issues for clients (including the double taxation treaty). In addition, Troy has experience in investigating professional negligence disputes, mis-selling of products and breach of statutory obligations.

Troy has extensive experience acting in banking litigation matters with a focus on financial transactions disputes. This includes enforcement of securities; guarantees; and contentious matters relating to trade and securities finance, such as disputes concerning Letters of Credit and Bills of Exchange.

Troy has appeared as an advocate in the Court of First Instance, Hong Kong, the Supreme Courts of New South Wales, Western Australia and Queensland, Australia. He holds an LLB (Hons) from The University of Technology, Sydney and a BSc in Psychology from The University of New South Wales in Australia. Troy is very active and enjoys playing tennis, golf and trail running in his free time. He is also an avid contributor to the firm’s Pro Bono and ESG initiatives.

Prior to Setia Law LLC, Victoria was a Deputy Public Prosecutor with the Financial and Technology Crime Division of the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC).  While at the AGC, she successfully prosecuted and tried many significant fraud, bribery, money-laundering, and sanctions cases and acted for the state in asset forfeiture cases.  She has also overseen complex fraud and fraudulent trading investigations and prosecutions, working in close collaboration with other law enforcement and governmental agencies such as the Commercial Affairs Department, the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau.  Victoria brings an in-depth understanding of law enforcement, policy-making and regulatory agenda-setting in Singapore.  She has represented Singapore as a delegate at financial regulation forums such as the G7’s Financial Action Task Force.

She holds a First Class degree from the University of Cambridge, and an LL.M. from Columbia Law School. At Columbia, she was awarded the Walter Gellhorn prize, for graduating with the highest academic average.

Vorapong Sutanont is a managing director at BRG based in Bangkok. He has over 20 years of experience in complex corporate investigations, cybercrime investigations, dispute analysis, fraud risk management, enterprise risk and governance, and process optimisations.

Mr. Sutanont has presided over investigations for multinational and local companies in Thailand, including multimillion-dollar fraud investigations into cybercrime, financial statement fraud, asset misappropriation, commercial bribery and kickback fraud. He serves extensively as a fact witness during legal proceedings in litigation support and testifies in civil, labour and criminal courts.

Mr. Sutanont has been an active participant in the forensic accounting and technology domain and has been a speaker at prominent national/global conferences in Thailand and the U.S.

Wern Jhien focuses on international commercial and financial disputes. Known for his thoughtful and strategic approach, clients describe him as “simply superb,” “extremely responsive,” and “a top-rate lawyer, amongst the best of his generation.” His experience spans cross-border insolvencies, fraud and asset recovery, and disputes involving technology, banking, and financial services.

In recent years, Wern Jhien has developed a strong focus on blockchain and cryptocurrency litigation in Singapore. His notable cases include representing a blockchain advisory company in a dispute over an NFT marketplace, assisting a cryptocurrency investor with acquisition-related claims, and advising platforms and liquidators on high-profile collapses such as Three Arrows Capital. He has also secured freezing and proprietary injunctions in fraud and asset recovery matters, including Singapore’s first proprietary injunction over cryptocurrencies and the BVI’s pioneering use of NFT airdrops for serving court papers.

As a Fellow of INSOL International, Wern Jhien has handled significant cross-border insolvency cases under the UNCITRAL Model Law. In Re Fullerton Capital Ltd (in liquidation), he addressed novel issues on the Centre of Main Interests (COMI) and disclosure obligations for non-parties. He has appeared at all levels of the Singapore courts, including the Singapore International Commercial Court, and regularly acts in international arbitrations, particularly in blockchain-related disputes.