All Anti-Bribery articles – Page 8
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Transparency Gaps in the Telecom Sector
Many telecom companies perform reasonably well when disclosing their anti-corruption practices, but less so concerning their organizational structures and country-by-country operations. With the potential for corruption fueled by relaxed rules and regulations, large licensing fees, major equipment contracts, the sale of state operators, and increased M&A activity, telecom companies need ...
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AML Regulations in NY Force CCOs to Rethink Everything
Earlier this month New York officials proposed new anti-money laundering regulations for financial institutions that fall under that state’s regulatory regime and supervision—which pretty much includes every major international bank in the world. Along with heightened demands for monitoring programs that detect money laundering red flags, the requirements seek to ...
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Blog
SFO: Sweett Group Admits to Bribery
The U.K. Serious Fraud Office this week confirmed that Sweett Group, a British property management, construction and surveying company, admitted to violating the Bribery Act, regarding conduct in the Middle East. The resolution would mark the SFO’s first conviction since enactment of the Bribery Act in 2011. More inside.
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Blog
ICBC Standard Bank Gets First U.K. Deferred Prosecution Agreement
ICBC Standard Bank has become the recipient of Britain's first deferred prosecution agreement, the U.K. Serious Fraud Office announced today. The bank will pay a total of $32.6 million in fines and repayments of bribery payments resulting from allegations of bribery in Tanzania. “This landmark DPA will serve as a ...
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Blog
Deloitte Poll: Gift-Giving Poses Corruption Risk
According to a recent online poll of 1,600 professionals conducted by Deloitte, 20 percent of respondents said their companies don’t assess employee gift-giving corruption risk. That’s especially concerning, given that red bows during the holiday season could mean red flags for regulators. “Giving gifts that could be seen as bribes ...
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Report: Telecom Companies Must Do More to Stop Corruption
The world’s largest telecommunications companies do not disclose enough information on how they organize themselves and even less on each country where they do business, according to a report from Transparency International. The report analyzed the 35 largest telecom companies, ranking them on the measures they take to prevent corruption, ...
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FIFA as ‘Victim’: Your Response Matters When U.S. Government Pays Visit
Image: One lesson from the FIFA corruption scandal is that when the U.S. government comes knocking, it requires a serious and thoughtful response. So far, now-suspended FIFA president Sepp Blatter (left) has responded in a way decidedly not serious and thoughtful. Our anti-corruption blogger Tom Fox takes a closer look ...
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Blog
Walmart FCPA Costs Reach $705 Million
Walmart disclosed this week in an earnings call that its investigation and compliance costs resulting from potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act were approximately $30 million in the third quarter of fiscal year 2016, now bringing its total costs to $705 million. To date, the retail giant has ...
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Blog
Alstom Sentenced to Pay $772 Million FCPA Fine
U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton of the District of Connecticut has sentenced French power and transportation giant Alstom to pay a record $772 million criminal penalty to the Department of Justice to resolve charges over violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The sentence marks the largest criminal fine ...
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Blog
Crawford & Company Self-Reports FCPA Investigation
Crawford & Company said yesterday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it has launched an internal investigation into potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The claims management company also said it has voluntarily self-reported the potential FCPA violations to the SEC and the Department ...
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Alexion Pharmaceuticals Discloses FCPA Probe
Alexion Pharmaceuticals said this week in a securities filing that it is being investigated by the Department of Justice concerning potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. As previously disclosed, Alexion received a subpoena in May in connection with an investigation by the SEC’s Enforcement Division “requesting information related ...
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Blog
Europe and Petrobras—What Has a Car Wash Wrought?
Image: The scope of the Petrobras corruption scandal is literally worldwide. Now, reports the Financial Times, Rolls Royce has become embroiled in the Brazilian national energy company’s “Operation Car Wash” snafu (dubbed so because the investigation literally started with a car wash), and is currently under investigation by the ...
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Blog
Vimplecom Braces for Massive Bribery Settlement
Amsterdam-based Vimplecom, a global telecommunication services provider, announced today that it has set aside USD$900 million in connection with an ongoing bribery investigation. The Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of Justice, and the Dutch Public Prosecution Service are conducting investigations relating primarily to VimpelCom’s business in Uzbekistan and prior ...
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Sevan Marine Self-Reports Bribery Probe
Sevan Marine, a technology and engineering company, announced last week that it has handed over to Norwegian authorities the results of an internal investigation report regarding potential bribes paid to Petrobras to obtain business. Additionally, it has initiated contact with the relevant prosecutors’ offices in the United States, the ...
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Article
What the FBI Brings to an FCPA Investigation
Image: Many of the agencies that investigate Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations are the ones you don’t hear about. They stand apart from the Justice Department, discreetly waiting to leap on the next FCPA violator that crosses their path. The best example is the FBI. “The FBI historically has been ...
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Bristol-Myers Squibb Settles FCPA Case for $14 Million
Pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb has reached a $14 million settlement with the SEC for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. According to the Commission, the company’s joint venture in China made cash payments and provided other benefits to healthcare providers at state-owned and state-controlled hospitals in exchange for prescription ...
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Blog
Scottish Prosecutors Resolve Bribery Case With Brand-Rex for £200,000
Scotland-based company Brand-Rex, a developer of cabling solutions for network infrastructure and industrial applications, last month reached a £212,800 civil settlement with Scottish prosecutors for failing to prevent bribery by a third party in violation of Section 7 of the U.K. Bribery Act. Details inside.
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Blog
Kinross Gold: Justice Department and SEC Probing West Africa Payments
Kinross Gold, a Canada-based gold mining company, said last week that it is under investigation by the Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission concerning allegations of improper payments made to government officials and certain internal control deficiencies at its West Africa mining operations. More inside.
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SNC-Lavalin Settles Bribery Case for $1.5 Million; Revamps E&C Program
Engineering business SNC-Lavalin has reached a $1.5 million settlement with the African Development Bank Group to resolve practices by SNC-Lavalin International, a subsidiary of the company, in connection with certain bank-financed contracts in Mozambique and Uganda. The company said it also has signficantly enhanced its ethics and compliance program. More ...
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Blog
Hitachi Settles FCPA Charges With SEC for $19 Million
Tokyo-based Hitachi reached a $19 million settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission to resolve charges that it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by inaccurately recording improper payments to South Africa’s ruling political party in connection with contracts to build two multi-billion dollar power plants. More inside.