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Beneficial Ownership Visualisation System

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Focus and Depth

Normally, diagrams will focus on a given Entity and show all Parties with either ownership or control interests in that Entity, either directly or indirectly. However, you may wish to adopt a different focus or limit which parties or interests are shown.

Focus

Your diagram’s focus determines which Parties and interests are included.

Parties

Diagrams have either an Owner or Entity Focus. That is, they either:

  • Focus on selected Entities (at the ends of Chains), then trace backwards all of their Interested Parties.
  • Focus on selected Beneficial Owners (at the starts of Chains), and trace forwards all the Entities they are interested in.
Entity Focus
BOVS core focus entity

Diagrams with an Entity Focus (the most common) show all the Parties that exist in the reverse direction of the Arrows from the selected Entities (usually just one). For instance, it may trace all of the Parties interested in a specific Company, back to a set of Persons.

Owner Focus
BOVS core focus owner

Diagrams with an Owner Focus show all the Parties that exist in the forward direction of the Arrows from the selected Beneficial Owners (usually just one). For instance, it may show all the interests of a specific Person.

Interests

Normally, BOVS diagrams show both ownership and control interests, that is, they lack an Interest Focus.

Interest Focus

BOVS core focus interest

You may choose to adopt an Interest Focus, that is, include only one type of interest. If so:

  • Only draw Arrows and Nodes for Parties with your chosen type of interest (known or unknown).
  • Clearly indicate on your diagram that it shows only your chosen type of interest.

Depth

Diagrams have a Depth, which, unless you decide and note otherwise, is unlimited. All Chains in the diagram are cut short at a length equal to the Depth.

In Entity Focus diagrams, the Chains in the reverse direction from the Entities at the end should be cut short after the specified Depth. This allows you to focus on:

  • The Beneficial Owners of the Entity you are focusing on (unlimited Depth)
  • The Parties interested in the Entity through a given number of intermediaries (Depth X)
  • The immediate beneficiaries of the Entity only (Depth 1)

In Owner Focus diagrams, the Chains in the forward direction from the Beneficial Owners at the start should be cut short after the specified Depth. This allows you to show either:

  • All the Entities that the Beneficial Owners you are focusing on have an interest in, through any number of intermediaries (unlimited Depth)
  • All the Entities that the Beneficial Owners have an interest in, through a given number of intermediaries (Depth X)
  • The Direct Interests of the Beneficial Owners only (Depth 1)

Depth should be limited only for the above reasons, that is, not for cosmetic reasons, to make diagrams fit into a given space, or to hide Parties not relevant to your point. If this is your chief concern, use Stacks rather than limiting your diagram’s Depth.

Appearance

BOVS core focus depth

If you choose to use a Depth that is not unlimited:

  • You must state the Depth you have chosen clearly in the information provided with your diagram.
  • Any Chains that are cut short due to your choice must indicate this with a line that trails off (see image).

Next page: Relevance and Completeness