’Front’ or ’straw men’ directors: a missing element in the effort to prevent the abuse of companies?

Abstract

Front or straw men directors are often used to conceal who is really managing companies involved in illicit activities of different kinds. Whereas the EU in recent years has made much headway in the effort to curb the abuse of companies, the EU has done little to address this problem. It is pointed out that such front or straw men directors are in fact a problem and that they can – and has been in several Member States – be addressed in different ways. The article analyses these different approaches and points out their pros and cons.

Keywords: Abuse, ‘front’ or ‘straw men’ directors

JEL Classification: K22