At the beginning of August, U.K. tobacco firm British American Tobacco (BAT) announced that it is under official investigation by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over allegations that it paid bribes in East Africa. The payments were allegedly aimed at influencing laws surrounding the use of tobacco in the region.

BAT says that it is cooperating with the SFO’s investigation, and is conducting its own investigation using external counsel.

Neil Hodge is a freelance business journalist and photographer based in Nottingham, United Kingdom. He writes on insurance and risk management, corporate governance, internal audit, compliance, and legal...