Remote Work Is Linked to a Decline in Financial Misconduct

Corporate fraud is rarely a solo act. It typically requires coordination—shared stories, repeated interactions, and trust among conspirators. What happens when those connections are disrupted by remote work? In a new study co-authored by Yale SOM’s John Barrios, researchers find that firms better positioned to shift to remote work during the pandemic experienced a sharp decline in financial misconduct. The likely reason: remote work raised the cost of sustaining collusion.