Sean Lam

Sean Lam is a Senior Managing Director in the Forensic & Litigation Consulting segment of FTI Consulting, and he is based in Hong Kong.

Sean has fourteen years of experience in forensic accounting, fraud investigation and litigation support. He has significant experience in a range of high-stakes, cross-jurisdiction projects, specialising on forensic accounting review and investigation of white-collar crime, accounting irregularities and other complex regulatory investigations. He has also been appointed as a testifying expert in legal proceedings in the Hong Kong High Court.

Sean has significant exposure to conducting investigations into suspected accounting irregularities of Hong Kong, U.S. and other foreign listed companies with principal business operations in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”). Sean regularly applies commercial, accounting and finance skills in examining historical financial, operational and transactional records, conducting fund tracing analyses and performing detailed analyses to establish the accuracy and completeness of those records. The results of Sean’s work are frequently presented to corporate boards, audit committees and legal advisors, together with regulatory and enforcement authorities in Hong Kong and abroad.

Sean has led and worked on a range of investigation and forensic accounting engagements. He recently led a team of forensic investigators in identifying a major accounting fraud, in excess of US$35 billion, at a PRC-based property developer. Pursuant to the results of the investigation, several former senior executives attempted to disguise the existence of ‘off-balance sheet’ liabilities through an elaborate scheme involving false accounting, falsification of books and records, and undisclosed ‘connected party’ transactions. One of Sean’s current engagements involve the “biggest investigation of market malfeasance” in Hong Kong’s history, in relation to a tangled web of 50 Hong Kong listed companies, also a subject matter of global media coverage. Sean’s investigation identified evidence of a string of irregular transactions, including loan fraud, market manipulation, misappropriation of company funds, as well as capital raising transactions designed to defraud minority shareholders.

Relevant Experience:

• Forensic expert in the initial public offering (“IPO”) sponsorship of a PRC based private company seeking to raise capital on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (“HKSE”);
• Testifying expert in a commercial dispute arising from a US$60 million investment by a PRC stated-owned enterprise in certain mining assets in Australia;
• Investigation of suspected irregular practices by a US subsidiary of a Hong Kong listed natural resource company to potentially circumvent US import duties; and
• Internal control and compliance review of a Hong Kong listed company in support of its resumption of trading application with the HKSE.

Sean has participated in client engagements in a range of industries including banking & finance, manufacturing, technology and agri-business. He holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Western Australia.

Sean is a Certified Fraud Examiner, Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist and is a member of CPA Australia. He is fluent in English, Cantonese and Mandarin.