The £464 million reason so many new barbers and corner shops appeared

New analysis has revealed the repeating patternNeil Shaw Assistant Editor07:56, 25 Aug 2026The UK's high streets are being used to launder criminal cash at a scale, and with a level of systemisation, that is significantly beyond what the current regulatory framework was built to detect, according to new research published today by SmartSearch.‌The research, drawn from an analysis of Companies House records covering 2016 to 2026, identifies 3,097 dissolved UK businesses whose 'lifecycle profile is inconsistent with normal trading in their sector'. The data covers two of the five cash-intensive sectors named in the 2025 National Risk Assessment of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing: hairdressing, barber shops and beauty salons, and convenience stores and corner shops.‌The findings sugg