Questions
Frequently asked questions.
What LAVAN does, how each part of it works, and what to expect when you write to us.
About LAVAN
What does LAVAN do?
LAVAN Global advises growing businesses, verifies their credibility and invests alongside their owners. It has three parts: LAVAN Advisory, LAVAN Credibility and LAVAN Investments.
Who does LAVAN work with?
Business owners and SMEs preparing for growth; investors and capital providers who need credible information about the businesses they evaluate; and corporates and strategic partners exploring opportunities between the U.S. and Africa.
Where does LAVAN work?
Lavan Global Management is registered in Lagos, Nigeria, and works between the U.S. and African business ecosystems.
Is LAVAN a bank or a credit bureau?
No. LAVAN does not lend, take deposits, manage investments or give regulated financial advice. A Trust Passport is a credibility assessment, not a guarantee of creditworthiness.
LAVAN advises, assesses and invests. How are conflicts of interest handled?
LAVAN Advisory works for clients, LAVAN Credibility assesses businesses, and LAVAN Investments pursues returns from ownership. Where one business could be touched by more than one of these, LAVAN discloses that to the business and agrees how the conflict will be managed before work continues.
Are the companies named on this site LAVAN investments?
Not necessarily. They are organisations LAVAN has worked with, and the nature and scope of that work differs from one to the next. A company’s appearance on this site is not a statement that LAVAN holds an ownership stake in it.
Advisory
What kinds of businesses do you work with?
Established and growing businesses, their founders and leadership teams, and corporate clients exploring U.S.–Africa opportunities. Fit is confirmed in the first conversation.
Where should a business start?
With the Business Growth & Readiness Diagnostic: a focused first engagement that shows leadership where the business stands and what to do next, with a prioritized 90-day plan.
How is an engagement scoped?
Every engagement starts with a written scope that names the question being answered, the deliverables and the timeline. Work does not begin until that scope is agreed.
Do you help with market entry between the U.S. and Africa?
Yes. Cross-border expansion is one of the four advisory services, for companies exploring U.S.–Africa trade, market entry, sourcing or strategic business relationships. The work covers market screening, partner evaluation and entry-model analysis.
How do you handle confidential information?
Nothing sensitive is requested through this website. Financial and commercial documents are exchanged only after an initial conversation, under a confidentiality agreement, through a controlled channel.
Does LAVAN Advisory lead to an investment from LAVAN?
Not by default. Advisory creates value for clients; LAVAN Investments pursues returns from ownership. Where the two could overlap, the conflict is disclosed and managed before any work continues.
Credibility and the Trust Passport
What is a Trust Passport?
A standardized credibility record for a business, in a form institutions can read. It is issued through Credibility OS after a LAVAN assessor has reviewed the business’s evidence, and it carries six decision scores, the results for all ten assessed domains and a public verification link.
How does an assessment work?
In five stages: application and intake, assessment and verification by a LAVAN assessor, scoring, passport issuance, and ongoing monitoring. Each stage leaves a record of what was done and on what evidence.
What does a business need to provide?
A business profile, its registration details, its financial records, and supporting governance, tax, operational and commercial documents. An assessment is built on documents, not on a questionnaire alone.
Is the score a prediction?
No. It describes the evidence a business provided and how far that evidence was verified on the day of assessment. It does not predict repayment or returns.
Who can see a business’s information?
The business and the assessors reviewing it. The business decides which institutions it shares its passport with. Anyone shown a passport can confirm it at the public verification page.
How long does a passport last?
A certificate is valid for 12 months and states its issue and expiry dates. Scores are recomputed when the evidence behind them changes.
How can I check that a passport is genuine?
Use the verification link or QR code on the passport. It takes under a minute and needs no account.
Is the sample Trust Passport a real business?
No. It is a specimen. The business named on it does not exist, its scores are illustrative, and the institutions listed on it are invented.
How do I get access?
Access to Credibility OS is by request. Tell us about your business or institution and we will set up the right kind of account.
Investments and partnerships
Is LAVAN Investments a fund? Can I invest in it?
No. LAVAN Investments is not a fund and is not accepting subscriptions. Nothing on this website is an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any security or interest in any fund or company.
What does LAVAN look for in a business?
Five things, asked in this order: business quality, financial evidence, management, economics and governance. LAVAN prefers established businesses with demonstrated demand, in sectors it understands.
What forms can a partnership take?
Four, in order of commitment: a commercial partnership with no ownership stake, a minority stake alongside the founders, a joint venture, or an acquisition. The structure is chosen to suit the opportunity.
How do I put a business opportunity to LAVAN?
A short note is enough to begin: the company, what the business does, its scale and history if you choose to share them, the opportunity, and the outcome you want. Please do not send bank statements, accounts, tax records, identity documents or customer lists. Those are exchanged later, under a confidentiality agreement.
Does writing to LAVAN commit either of us to anything?
No. Contacting LAVAN, or submitting a business opportunity, is not an offer to invest, a financing commitment, or an agreement to provide advisory services. Any investment or engagement is made only under signed written agreements.
For institutions and partners
How should a lender or investor use a Trust Passport?
As a place to begin, not as the decision. Check the dates, confirm it is genuine, read Verification Confidence first, then go to the score for your decision and look at what was flagged. A passport informs a decision and should not be the sole basis for lending or investing.
How does an institution get access to Credibility OS?
Accounts are set up by LAVAN on request. After a first conversation to confirm what you need, an institutional account is provisioned for you. Verifying a certificate needs no account.
Can we use it to check a supplier or a customer?
Yes. A Trust Passport gives a buyer a view of whether a supplier can deliver and is likely to last, on the same standard a lender uses, and lets a business extending credit check a customer who has no credit file.
Writing to LAVAN
What happens to the details I send?
They are used to reply to you and to decide whether and how LAVAN can help. LAVAN does not sell your details or use them for advertising, and using the contact form does not put you on a mailing list. You can ask to see, correct or delete what is held by writing to privacy@lavanglobal.com.
Should I send documents with my first message?
No. Please do not send bank statements, tax records or identity documents through this website. Financial and commercial documents are exchanged only after an initial conversation, under a confidentiality agreement.
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