Turning evidence into action against financial crime. An independent think-tank bridging criminology, policy and industry. Financial Crime Prevention is at the core of what we do. By bridging the gap between research and real-world practice, we help to protect organisations, customers, and the wider economy from criminal threats.
Operating globally as a UK-based not-for-profit Community Interest Company, The Financial Crime Lab partners with banks, fintechs, payment providers, and their broader operating networks, including technology firms, contact centres, and media agencies. Through independent criminological research, bespoke consultancy, executive training, and behavioural awareness campaigns, our work is dedicated to understanding, addressing, and preventing financial crime to reduce real-world harm for organisations and their customers worldwide.
Work with our specialists on research, consultancy, education and awareness campaigns designed to change behaviour.
Book a meetingOur Research Labs deep dive into emerging threats, money mule networks and systemic vulnerabilities, publishing Lab Reports, whitepapers and briefings grounded in evidence.
Explore the researchA pocket guide to how scams really work, written by Dr Nicola Harding.
Fraud is now the most common crime in the UK, and only 14% of cases are reported. This guide takes you inside how a scam is engineered: why scams work, the CREATE framework we use to map how a scam moves you to action, and the universal red flags that give almost any scam away.
Then a field guide to the scams doing the most damage right now, each with a page to spot it and a page to stop it, from safe account and impersonation scams to investment, romance and AI-enabled fraud. It finishes with the one move that beats every scam, and what to do if it has already happened.
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Policies, alerts and training can create reassurance without resilience. Dr Nicola Harding explores why effective AML controls must connect to real risks, not just compliance checklists.
The LIBOR prosecutions collapse as the UK consults on paying whistleblowers, FinCEN withdraws its crypto mixing and self-hosted wallet proposals, and a laundering service built on 15,000 deceived money mules pleads guilty.
Closing suspected money mule accounts is not the same as preventing harm. Dr Nicola Harding examines the FCA review, recruitment patterns and where intervention can disrupt the laundering script.
The day-to-day hard work of law enforcement operations, policymakers and regulators, and financial crime professionals working across financial institutions and the public and private sector is mostly hidden.
But if you really listen, a bigger picture is emerging.
We track and analyse what is happening in financial crime globally in a weekly Lab Report, then again in a monthly review, examining what this means for our day-to-day and the future of financial crime.
Keep up to date with financial crime news, with a sprinkle of criminological thinking and a critical eye.
Read the Lab Reports
The ICO is investigating more than 3,600 complaints about automated calls in September. Industry experts warn the fake job offers behind them may draw people into money muling.
Read at BBC News
A two-week islandwide operation linked suspects aged 15 to 81 to more than 633 scam cases, with victims losing around S$4.4 million.
Read at AsiaOne
Venues in nine cities warn that "scarefest" listings are bogus. A technology expert calls it one of the most sophisticated scam sites he has seen.
Read at BBC NewsFinancial crime isn’t just about numbers on a balance sheet, it’s about people’s lives. Every scam, every fraud, every laundered pound has a ripple effect. It erodes trust, exploits the vulnerable, and undermines the economy.
At the FC Lab, our mission is to turn evidence into action. We bridge the gap between research and real-world practice, helping organisations build resilience against scams, fraud, and money laundering.
We believe progress comes from more than compliance or quick fixes. It requires insight, innovation, and collaboration across sectors. By combining criminological research, frontline experience, and behavioural science, we design smarter systems, empower people, and safeguard communities.
Our purpose is simple but ambitious: to reduce the human and financial harm caused by financial crime, and to create a safer, fairer economy for everyone.
Meet the people behind the Lab
The harm doesn’t always end with spiking.
How spiking may be used to gain access to someone’s phone and personal accounts, made visible through lived experience and original research.
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Stopping young people scoring the own goal that follows them for life.
Fraud, scams and financial exploitation, tackled through the clubs they already trust.
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Child safety technology that spots harm while there is still time to step in.
Tuteliq flags grooming, bullying, scams, self-harm and exploitation across text, voice, image and video.
Visit TuteliqThrough our consultancy and advisory services, which include a range of world-leading experts, we help create bespoke strategies that design out crime from systems, products, and processes.
How we adviseAwareness campaigns designed to change behaviour, grounded in criminological research and behavioural science.
See our campaignsEducation is a key part of our core belief that people play a key role in protecting against financial crime. We equip teams with criminological insights they can apply day-to-day.
Training & masterclasses