FROZEN BY ASSOCIATION - PART 2

Remember last week’s Horror Story post? Someone reached out to share an even worse follow-up: their transaction is now stuck in limbo because the buyer’s bank account was frozen mid-deal.

I can’t share the details for privacy, but here’s the structure:

+ It was a multi-step transaction

+ Payments were staggered

+ The seller already received the initial payments

+ The final balance was supposed to be released later

…and then the buyer’s account got frozen.

So now, the deal is effectively frozen.

Can the parties still back out? No.

Can the seller recover the money already paid? No.

Could brokers have predicted this? Honestly, no.

A broker can verify the title, identities, authority to sell, and documentation. But there is no realistic way for brokers to know whether a buyer is under investigation or whether AMLC will freeze funds.

What could have prevented this?

The “sigurista” answer is still the simplest: Kaliwaan. Full payment first — before the seller releases the title. Because staggered deals create a risk window. Once money flow is interrupted mid-way, everyone gets stuck.

Was the seller’s account frozen too?

Based on what was shared: no. It appears accounts are typically frozen when the account holder is the main person being investigated (or directly linked).

Also, in the previous post, I mentioned that it took our client around 4 months to get their account unfrozen.

Now here’s the scary part: Word on the street is that it’s no longer just 300+ accounts — it may already be closer to 10,000 accounts currently frozen by the AMLC. If that number is even remotely accurate, then we’re looking at a very, very long line of people trying to get their accounts released by the Court of Appeals.

Lesson: Deal structure now matters as much as documentation.