Noble Street, established by ex-Scotland Yard detective Richard Marston and US businessman Mike Burkhold, revealed that it will provide 'Know Your Customer' services to British banks, insurance companies, lawyers, and other financial institutions.

The service reportedly makes use of a network of 200 field agents located in over 150 countries, plus a computer database, to verify the stated identity of banking clients and alert institutions to any previous irregularities. Checks can take anywhere from 24 hours to one week to complete, depending on the amount of due diligence required.

According to company director Richard Marston, the service will initially be offered to UK institutions, although Noble Street hopes eventually to sell the tool overseas. Asked why he thought the service was necessary to the fight against terrorist funding in the United Kingdom, Mr Marston explained: 'It is easy to launder money through London. That's not to say that it's easier here than elsewhere or there is wiful blindness here. It's just that London's a very big financial centre, so large amounts of the world's dirty money pass through it.'