A new study finds that dirty money remains easy to hide

A BOOK PUBLISHEDNGOCSP in 2014 shook the world of offshore finance. “Global Shell Games” exposed the ease with which ne’er-do-wells could launder money or dodge tax using bank accounts held by anonymous shell companies. The book, activism and numerous leaks—the latest, earlier this month, being the Pandora Papers—have since pushed governments to increase corporate transparency. Britain and other countries introduced public registers of company owners. America passed a law ending shell-company anonymity.But to what end? The book’s authors are putting the finishing touches on a study that suggests little has changed. The banks and corporate-service providers (s)—firms that set up companies for others—meant to be in the front line of the fight against financial crime do a terrible job of differentiating between legitimate would-be clients and those waving red flags.