Scammers rarely look suspicious at first. They often sound informed, polite, and urgent. For growth-stage family businesses, that can make fraud harder to catch because the request may appear to come from a vendor, lender, employee, customer, or even a family member.
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These are some of the three warning signs:
1. Pressure
Scammers want fast action before anyone can verify details. Be cautious of messages that demand immediate payment, a wire transfer, a password reset, or a change to banking instructions.
2. Small change in a familiar process
A vendor may “update” payment instructions. An executive may “request” a confidential transfer. A caller may claim there is a problem with an account and ask for login credentials. These requests often seem routine, but the risk is deviation.
3. Secrecy
Fraudsters may say the matter is confidential, time-sensitive, or too sensitive to discuss with others. Healthy businesses do not rely on secrecy to move money or share access.
What to do
The best defense is a simple verification habit. Confirm unusual requests through a second channel you already trust. Call the known phone number on file, not the number in the email. Require dual approval for wire transfers and changes to vendor payment details. Train employees to pause without fear of being blamed for slowing something down.
Commercial banks and business banking leaders can play an important role here. Regular reminders, clear escalation paths, and relationship-based conversations help clients recognise risks before money leaves the account.
Scams work when urgency overrides judgment. A calm pause, a verified phone call, and a clear internal process can stop most fraud attempts before they become losses.
Quote for the week
“Trust, but verify.”— Ronald Reagan, ex-US president, popularising a Russian proverb
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See you next week for another edition of weekly Entrepreneur Insights. May you always have the mindset of an entrepreneur.
Sajjad Hamid is an SME & Family Business Adviser who supports entrepreneurs in scaling their ventures. In his spare time in Trinidad and Tobago, he cultivates organic tropical fruits and vegetables, practising sustainable farming in his home garden.
He is the author of Build Your Legacy Business: Solopreneur To Family Business Hero. Sajjad is a Fellow of the Family Firm Institute. He writes a column titled Entreprenomics in the Business section of the Trinidad and Tobago Guardian. You can contact him at [email protected] or visit www.entrepreneurtnt.com.
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