Image: Spain has been receiving a lot of attention for its corporate compliance defense. Not only did the country adopt new requirements to help root out corruption; it goes further than other nations have gone by mandating specific features that compliance programs must contain to qualify. In this podcast, Aaron Murphy, partner at law firm Foley & Lardner, discusses the steps Spain has taken to embed compliance right into its statute. Listen here.
Aarti Maharaj
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Podcast: Spain’s New Corporate Compliance Defense
Spain has been receiving a lot of attention recently for its corporate compliance defense. Not only did the country adopt new requirements to help root out corruption but it goes further than other countries have gone by mandating specific features that compliance programs must contain in order to qualify. In this podcast, Aaron Murphy, partner at law firm, Foley & Lardner, discusses the steps Spain has taken to embed compliance right into its statute. Listen here.
Posted inEurope
SFO in Talks With Barclays to End Long-Running Criminal Probe
The Serious Fraud Office has extended a deferred-prosecution agreement to Barclays to end an investigation into the bank’s alleged role in the £2 billion Qatari 2008 fundraising and other practices that helped the bank weather the financial crisis. British regulators recently gained the power to issue DPAs, and the SFO had considered informing the magistrates’ court that Barclays was not cooperating with regulators. Details inside.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Czech Bankers Concerned About New EU Rules
Czech bankers are worried about new European rules that may pose systemic risks to countries across Europe. The legislation, which is currently being reviewed by the European Commission will cause big depositors and bondholders, instead of national regulators, to incur more losses. Bankers are worried that this could lead to destabilized banks and market volatility in some countries. Details inside.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Restructuring the Bank of England: More Transparency
Image: In a recent consultation paper, Britain’s Finance Minister George Osborne unveiled his plans to restructure the Bank of England’s regulatory system. Among his initiatives, the National Audit Office will provide more transparency to the central bank, while the Prudential Regulation Authority will no longer operate as a subsidiary and will become an integral part of the watchdog’s structure. More inside.
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Accounting Scandal Takes Down Toshiba’s Head Honcho
Image: Hisao Tanaka, chief executive of Toshiba Corp., is expected to step down in September in light of accounting missteps at the Japanese conglomerate. The domino effect will continue as key board members are rumored to be leaving over the next few months. News reports indicate that top executives may have knowingly encouraged corporate misconduct for several years.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Ireland’s Regulatory Body Yet to Investigate Bloxham Accounting Practices
Since 2012, now-defunct Bloxham Stockbrokers, Ireland’s oldest stockbroker, halted all trading activities amid a Central Bank investigation, which uncovered a €5.3 million gap in its accounts. Ireland’s regulatory body, the Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board, has yet to investigate the firm’s accounting practices. In May, the Central Bank banned the company’s former head of finance and compliance from managing a financial firm for 10 years—the longest sanction ever imposed by the regulator. Details inside.
Posted inEurope
EU Regulator Charges MasterCard Amid Breach of Antitrust Rules
Image: MasterCard is once again in the spotlight, as the European Commission has swooped in on the company’s potential abuse of interchange fees. After a two-year investigation, Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said, “MasterCard is artificially raising the costs of card payments, which would harm consumers and retailers in the European Union.” More inside.
Posted inEthics & Culture
More Disclosures Needed From Public Officials, Says OECD
Image: The pursuit of good governance is never easy. According to a recent Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development survey, inadequate disclosures, lack of whistleblower protection laws, and concerns about integrity have caused many citizens of advanced countries to lose trust in national governments. More inside.
Posted inEurope
British Watchdog Sets New Accountability Standards
Image: Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority has released new rules for its Senior Managers Regime, a compliance standard that will hold senior managers at financial firms personally accountable for corporate misconduct. “We have given clarity on rules that will embed personal accountability into the culture of the city,” Martin Wheatley, FCA chief executive, said. More inside.
