Brightwater Due Diligence provides corporate intelligence and risk advisory services to a broad set of clients, including private equity firms, private wealth management firms, NGOs and investment banks, typically in advance of high-value or high-risk transactions.Our mandate is simple — to ensure that our clients have an early and unencumbered view of any potential legal, reputational or regulatory risks posed by their prospective business partners.The company was founded by Max Block, who has over 20 years of experience in the corporate intelligence and risk advisory space. He has worked for top-tier consulting firms and in-house with the Financial Crimes Compliance (FCC) unit of one of the largest global financial services firms in the world. He has deep experience leveraging both open-source data and discreet source inquiries in the course of his research. With respect to the latter, he works closely with a trusted network of former intelligence officers and law enforcement officials in the U.S, Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Asia.Max spent the first decade of his career in journalism, producing stories in Afghanistan, Iraq (embedded), Mali, Honduras, Nicaragua, Tierra del Fuego and elsewhere. He is a graduate of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism (2000) and Vassar College (1992).

Led a team of investigative specialists providing due diligence services to Exiger’s financial services clients, generally in support of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) programs. Primary focus was ensuring risk-appropriate investigative scopes, quality control, on-time delivery and overall client satisfaction for some of the largest financial services firms in the world.

Oversight of a team of investigative specialists focused on assessing the financial crime and regulatory risks associated with high-risk wealth management clients (e.g., those with a nexus to high-risk jurisdictions, political exposure, or questionable sources of wealth). In addition, focused heavily on assessing potential risks related to equity and debt capital market transactions (e.g., IPOs, sovereign bond issuances, etc.). Provided written and verbal recommendations to senior leadership, including Executive Board.

Director with Navigant's Global Investigations & Compliance Group. Led a New York-based team of investigative analysts. Oversaw delivery of hundreds of domestic and international enhanced due diligence investigations for a variety of clients, including multinational banks, hedge funds, private equity firms, oil and gas companies and pharmaceuticals, typically in advance of private equity investments, M&A activity and joint ventures. Specialties:* Extensive experience supervising complex reputational inquiries in high-risk countries (e.g., Angola, Nigeria, China, India, Russia, etc.) * Well-established relationship with and immediate access to expansive network of human intelligence (HUMINT) sources* Expert-level understanding of all facets of open source investigative due diligence (OSINT) research (e.g., Lexis, Pacer, Dow Jones, local public records repositories, sanctions list-matching, dark web, etc.)* Deep knowledge of risks associated with doing business with Politically Exposed Persons

Conducted domestic and international due diligence investigations for KPMG’s Corporate Intelligence Unit, typically in advance of M&A activity, joint ventures or private equity deals. Worked in a high-pressure environment, often conducting investigations in the final stages of sensitive deals by or between large, publicly-traded companies.

Worked as a reporter and documentary producer for the National Geographic Channel. Heavy focus on U.S. military response to 9/11 attacks. Reported from Iraq (embedded), Afghanistan and aboard the USS Carl Vinson (Nimitz-class supercarrier) following 9/11 attacks.