Seller and US agent trust
Shakiest part of the setup. Agent doesn’t hold leverage, they don’t own the inventory and can be swapped. But their exposure is real: name on the lease, address that could get raided. Motivated not to skim (ongoing payout beats one-time grab) but motivated to bail fast if law enforcement sniffs around. If an agent steals, seller has zero recourse.
What holds it together: reputation in the logistics network (word travels fast), hometown/clan ties for some, staggered payments so the agent’s always owed something, and running multiple agents in parallel to absorb losses.