Red-Flag Radar

You are on the desk at your national Financial Intelligence Unit. Sort each transaction: FLAG for further investigation or CLEAR as benign. Submit when done.

Case set curated by Dr. Collen Lediga, Ruhr-Universität Bochum.

Table setup · 1–6 players

Best with 2–4 (shift pairs)

1Solo study

Work all four shifts; score is correct calls minus false positives minus misses.

2Head-to-head

Split the tape: each player screens, then reviews the other's decisions before submission.

3–4Case cell

S1–S4 as one desk. Nothing is submitted until the shift lead signs it.

5–6Full table

Add S5 and S6. The regulator scores the desk's memo quality at the end of every shift.

Seats at the table

S1Screening analystFirst pass on the tape: flag or clear.
S2Second-line reviewerChallenges every flag; owns false-positive cost.
S3Typology specialistNames the indicator behind each flag.
S4Shift leadSigns the escalation memo and defends the batch.
S5Bank MLROArgues the reporting-entity view: what the file actually shows.
S6Supervisor / regulatorAudits the desk on quality, not volume.

Team rules

01One seat, one voice: a decision is only locked when the seat that owns it says so out loud.
02Every locked decision needs a one-sentence justification the seat would defend in a real file.
03Any player may call a 60-second 'case conference' once per round to force a table discussion.
04The facilitator (or the highest-scoring player of the previous round) keeps time and reads the outcome cards.
05A flag with no named indicator does not count, even if the item is genuinely suspicious.

Rotation — Rotate the shift-lead seat each shift; every player signs at least one batch.

T-08Local charity, registered NGO€52,000

Grant disbursements to 4 vetted beneficiary NGOs

T-02Retiree, single account holder€1,400

Monthly pension deposit €1,400 from state fund

T-03Import-export company, 6 months old€800,000

Round-tripping: €800k out to Cyprus shell, €795k back the following week as a 'loan'

T-05Politically-exposed person (junior minister)€120,000

Unexplained inbound wire from a construction-firm subsidiary

T-06Bakery, 12 employees€28,400

Salary run to 12 named employees via SEPA

T-07Private client, newly opened account€2,000,000

€2m inbound from a BVI entity, followed by immediate purchase of London property

T-04University student€3,200

Tuition payment to registered university

T-01Farm cooperative, rural district€17,100 total

Weekly deposit of €1,900 cash for 9 consecutive weeks at 3 different branches