A disciplined answer to a specific question.
An investigation is not a search for everything that might be interesting. It is a structured effort to establish what happened, who was involved and what can be proven, carried out to a standard designed to hold when it is tested.
Every Hydra investigation follows the same method. We begin by defining the question, because a vague brief produces a vague answer. We then establish what can realistically be proven with the time, budget and lawful means available, and we tell you before work starts. Only then do we gather evidence, to a standard that a board, a court or a counterparty can rely upon.
The work is carried out by analysts, investigators and specialists operating as one team. Analysts build the picture from documents, records and open sources. Investigators take the enquiry to people and places. Specialists in finance, technology and digital assets join where the question demands it. Where the answer is not online, we verify it in the field, in person, in the jurisdiction concerned.
Disciplines are combined as the case requires. An investigation may draw on our intelligence capability to build the picture, on due diligence where a decision depends on the findings, and on digital asset intelligence where funds have moved through cryptocurrency or other digital assets.
Eight disciplines. One standard of evidence.
Corporate and fraud investigations are the heart of the practice. The remaining disciplines are drawn on as a matter requires, singly or in combination, under a single case lead.
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Corporate Investigations
Misconduct, conflicts of interest, theft of assets or information, breaches of contract and disputes between shareholders, partners or executives. We establish the facts, trace the money and the relationships behind them, and document findings to a standard suitable for litigation or a regulatory response.
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Fraud & Deception
Investment fraud, invoice and payment diversion, procurement fraud, insurance fraud, romance and impersonation schemes, and misrepresentation in commercial dealings. We identify the individuals and entities behind a scheme, establish how it operated, follow the proceeds where they can lawfully be followed and identify realistic avenues for redress.
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Private Investigations
Matters that affect an individual or a family rather than a company: personal disputes, inheritance and estate questions, matrimonial matters, harassment, extortion attempts and threats. Handled with the discretion such matters require, and to the same evidential standard as any corporate assignment.
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Internal Investigations
Allegations raised inside an organisation: whistleblower reports, harassment, bribery, expense and procurement abuse, data leaks and breaches of policy. We conduct an independent, documented enquiry that protects the organisation, treats those involved fairly and is prepared to a standard intended to withstand scrutiny from regulators, auditors and employment tribunals.
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Surveillance
Lawful physical observation where a question can only be answered by establishing where a person goes, whom they meet and what they do. Conducted by trained specialists, within the law of the jurisdiction concerned, and recorded in a form that can be produced as evidence.
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Missing Persons
Tracing people whose whereabouts are unknown: estranged relatives, beneficiaries, witnesses, debtors and individuals who have chosen not to be found. We combine records, open-source research and enquiry on the ground, and we manage contact with care where a person may not wish to be found.
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Online Investigations
Identifying and attributing anonymous accounts where the available information lawfully allows it, tracing the source of defamation, leaks and impersonation, mapping the networks behind coordinated online activity, and preserving digital evidence in a form designed to withstand challenge. Conducted using publicly available and lawfully obtained information.
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Special Investigations
Matters that do not fit a standard category: complex cross-border disputes, sensitive situations involving public figures, cases where several disciplines must run in parallel, and assignments that call for a bespoke team and a bespoke plan. Scoped individually and accepted only where we are confident of adding value.
Findings you can act on, in a form you can use.
The value of an investigation lies in the decision it allows you to make. Every report is written for that decision, and for the people who will test it.
- 01Clear findingsA written report that answers the question asked, states what was established and sets out the evidence for each conclusion in plain terms.
- 02Evidence and documentation for legal and commercial useSource material, exhibits and a record of how each item was obtained, prepared so it can be used in negotiation, litigation, arbitration or a regulatory response.
- 03Verified and unverified information, clearly separatedEvery finding is graded. What has been confirmed from official records or first-hand verification is distinguished from what is reported, alleged or inferred.
- 04Coordination with legal advisersWhere appropriate we work alongside your counsel from the outset, so that the enquiry is shaped by the legal strategy and its output is prepared with proceedings in mind.
- 05Support for the next stageWhen findings call for action, Hydra can carry the matter forward through field operations or introduce specialist partners: forensic accountants, digital forensics firms, asset tracing counsel and local investigators in the relevant jurisdiction.
Hydra uses lawful and proportionate methods. Our sources are publicly available, licensed and lawfully obtained records, combined with human enquiry and, where the matter requires it, physical verification. We do not hold or claim access to restricted police, government or intelligence databases, and we decline instructions that would depend on it.
Hydra distinguishes verified official records from allegations, rumours and unverified online information. The availability of official records varies by jurisdiction, and our reports state clearly where a fact has been confirmed and where it has not.
Instructed by those who need the answer to hold.
Our clients share one requirement: the findings must hold when they are tested. Every enquiry is planned and reported with that test in mind.
- 01Law firmsEvidence gathering and fact-finding in support of litigation, arbitration, internal reviews and regulatory matters.
- 02CorporationsMisconduct, fraud, leaks, disputes and questions about counterparties, employees and partners.
- 03Private clientsPersonal, family and estate matters that call for discretion and a clear answer.
- 04InvestorsEstablishing what happened after an investment has gone wrong, and support where a dispute, misrepresentation or fraud is suspected. Pre-investment checks are handled under due diligence.
- 05Family officesProtection of family interests, staff vetting, disputes and matters that must remain private.
- 06Compliance teamsIndependent enquiry into allegations, counterparty exposure and third-party conduct.
