Telecommunications supplier Ciena disclosed in its latest quarterly report the Securities and Exchange Commission advised the company it does not intend to recommend an enforcement action in connection with a previously disclosed investigation into potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Ciena first disclosed in its annual report for fiscal year 2017 that “one of Ciena’s third-party vendors raised allegations about certain questionable payments to one or more individuals employed by a customer in a country in the ASEAN region.” Ciena said it promptly initiated an internal investigation into the matter, with the assistance of outside counsel, to determine whether the payments might have violated applicable laws and regulations, including the FCPA.

Ciena said it voluntarily contacted the SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice in September 2017 to advise them of the relevant events and the findings of its internal investigation.

In December 2018, the Department of Justice advised it declined to prosecute this matter and that its investigation is closed.

 

Jaclyn Jaeger is a freelance contributor to Compliance Week after working for the company for 15 years. She writes on a wide variety of topics, including ethics and compliance, risk management, legal, enforcement, technology, and more.

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