situation
Sound familiar?
- a European bank refused to open an account without explaining why
- your account has been blocked, compliance is requesting documents — and then goes silent for weeks
- you suspect the reason is old publications, court cases or mentions next to other people’s scandals
- a deal, a relocation or a structure lies ahead where a check cannot be avoided — and your search results are not ready for it
A compliance officer doesn’t call to clarify. They google — and make a decision based on what they find.
complexity
What the bank actually sees
A KYC check is not “a Google search”: screening systems (World-Check and equivalents), years of adverse media, sanctions and PEP databases, connections to other people.
A ten-year-old piece, long since refuted or no longer relevant, carries as much weight in these systems as a fresh one. An explanatory letter without a change in the information field itself almost never changes the decision — the officer trusts sources, not letters.
limits
What we can do — and what we can’t
We change the information field: sources, search results, the media footprint.
We do not influence the bank’s decision, do not “make arrangements with compliance” and do not promise that an account will be opened — no one who works honestly can guarantee that. Our job is to make sure the check sees an accurate picture rather than random noise from ten years ago.
process
How we work
01
Diagnostics through compliance eyes
We recreate the check: screening, adverse media in three languages, databases. We find what exactly is working against you.
02
Working with sources
Whatever can be removed or corrected, we remove and correct: outdated materials, inaccuracies, refuted allegations.
03
A credible footprint
We build a layer of publications and verified facts that the check sees: who you are, what you do, why the mentions are not what they seem.
04
Preparing to apply
Once the information field is ready, you go into the check with a different picture. We work alongside your lawyers: they handle the documents, we handle the information field.
Adverse media are negative mentions in the media that banks check as part of KYC/AML; they affect decisions on opening and maintaining an account regardless of how old the publications are. Working with adverse media means changing the information field before the next check.
formats
Both formats are customized. The cost depends on the complexity of the search results, the volume of negative content, and the target outcome.
Project
A defined project with a specific outcome: changing search results and resolving a particular issue. Timeline: from a few months.
Ongoing support
Reputation as a managed asset: monitoring, responding, and developing your information landscape. For those whose name works for them every day.
agency
Why SERM.UA
Since 2011 we have been preparing clients’ information fields for the most demanding readers — and bank compliance is the most formal of them.
More than 500 projects. Private individuals only. We work in tandem with your lawyers and banking advisers.
question
The bank won’t explain the refusal. How can I tell the reason is online?
The first-stage diagnostics recreate the check and show what exactly the bank sees. If the reason is not informational, we will tell you honestly — and that is a matter for lawyers, not for us.
How long does it take to prepare for reapplying?
It depends on how deep the problem is: from 2–3 months (targeted corrections) to six months or more (a systematic rebuild of the field).
Do you work with World-Check and similar databases?
Do you work with World-Check and similar databases?
Is this legal?
Entirely: legal mechanisms, communication with platforms, creation of credible content. No attempts to “hack” the check — that is a path to blacklists for good.
