Media Partnerships: Open Access to YC World by YouControl for Cross-Border Investigations

When investigative journalists work with vast volumes of open-source data, numbers and names begin to tell stories, while complex corruption networks, offshore structures and sanctions-evasion schemes lose their ability to remain hidden. YouControl and YC World are used by journalists and civil-society organisations for investigations and research in Ukraine and across borders. Their data has been used or cited in over 30,000 reports by Ukrainian and international media.

Open data: Local depth, global reach

To enable in-depth investigations, we provide journalists with two integrated and complementary solutions. YouControl is designed for examining and monitoring the Ukrainian business environment. The analytical system aggregates information from more than 220 official sources, builds detailed profiles of companies and individuals and visualises connections between related entities.

When an investigation crosses national borders, media organisations can use YC World, a cross-border intelligence platform covering more than 80 jurisdictions worldwide. Its Infinite Graph feature allows investigators to explore multiple layers of corporate relationships. The platform highlights risk indicators linked to connected entities, including sanctions and PEP exposure, to support further review. YC World also includes an AI-powered Data Extractor that can process multiple content formats, including text documents, PDFs, audio/video content and CSV files. AI-extracted results should be reviewed by the user before being relied on.

Recognising the public value of investigative journalism, we provide eligible journalists and anti-corruption NGOs with access to YouControl and YC World following application and verification. We ask that YC World and YouControl be cited as data sources in published investigations. Robust fact-checking and evidence-based reporting remain essential to credible and effective investigative journalism.

Analytics in action: How data powers high-impact investigations

YouControl and YC World have been used in investigations ranging from domestic corruption reporting to cross-border sanctions and public-funds scrutiny. The following cases illustrate how journalists have used our data in practice; factual allegations described below are attributed to the respective media investigations.

Shadow exports of Ukrainian grain (The Guardian). According to The Guardian, legal filings, company records and YouControl analysis provided indications of corporate links connected to grain flows from Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories. The newspaper cited an agricultural consultant who estimated that as much as 5 million tonnes may have been stolen.

Tracing the EU’s climate billions (Context.ro). Context.ro used YC World alongside other tools to examine companies receiving EU climate-adaptation funds in Romania. The outlet reported that around €9.2 billion was available for adaptation and risk-management measures through 2027 and examined projects including a coastal-erosion programme worth about €1 billion. The investigation also reported political connections involving some companies linked to these projects.

A logistics loophole for circumventing sanctions (Frontstory.pl / SVT.se, Buro Media). According to Frontstory.pl and partner outlets, their investigation identified a network of Polish companies linked to Russian and Belarusian transport businesses that, the journalists said, was used to circumvent EU sanctions. Frontstory reported that five Polish companies in the network recorded more than PLN 200 million in combined annual revenue and that one company had been established with a €50 million loan from a Russian entity.

Diplomatic cover for Russia’s military-industrial complex (StateWatch / Investigace.cz / UNITED24). According to the joint StateWatch and Investigace.cz investigation, Belarusian honorary consul Denis Karpovich was linked to a cross-border business network that investigators said facilitated exports of sanctioned and dual-use components to Russian military-linked companies. YC World was used to map the corporate network.

Corporate network mapped in YC World for the StateWatch / Investigace.cz investigation. Source: YC World / YouControl.

Recognition from the global investigative journalism community

YC World has also received recognition from the investigative journalism community. In 2025, the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) included YC World in its annual list of top investigative tools.

Investigative professionals describe the value of the platform in their own work:

“It brings a great deal of clarity to corporate structures and relationships, which is enormously helpful in our investigations. It is an excellent tool for background checks and for mapping complex ownership networks.” — Marlou Poncin, journalist, EenVandaag

“YC World has proved extremely useful for building visual profiles of individuals with business interests both in Ukraine and abroad. Its graph functionality is an excellent tool for mapping these relationships.” — Amra Džonlić, Research and Data Operations Manager, OCCRP

“Your service helped us identify significant integrity and due diligence risks involving a potential investor in a major infrastructure project. It has also become an indispensable tool in our day-to-day anti-corruption research, helping us verify business relationships and identify assets connected to politically exposed persons (PEPs).” — Artūrs Bikovs, Transparency International Latvia (Delna)

R&D expertise: Data and analysis ready for newsrooms

YouControl and YC World research teams regularly publish analytical materials based on open-source data. Their research covers macroeconomic and business trends, public procurement, public-official asset declarations and sanctions-related analysis. The collection of nearly 300 analytical studies is available through the YC World and YouControl blogs.

We also work directly with newsrooms to support original and exclusive reporting. If you have an idea for an investigation or analytical project but lack the capacity to collect, process or analyse large datasets, contact us at info@youcontrol.world. We will consider your request.

Media partnerships: How to access the tools  

We invite practising journalists and representatives of anti-corruption NGOs to apply for partner access. Visit the For Journalists and media page on the YC World website and complete the registration form. Applications are reviewed through a verification process, after which our team will notify applicants of the access decision.

Get access to the tools, contribute to collaborative investigations and produce stories with real public impact. Every investigation strengthens the shared effort to advance transparency worldwide. We also offer a practical course, “Fact-Checking for Journalists” by YC Academy, which will help improve your information verification skills and build investigations on confirmed data. The course is free and available to all registered users.