Global Glimpses

Green

A number of well-known anti-corruption activists, such as Transparency International and Corruption Watch, are urging David Green, director of Britain’s Serious Fraud Office, to rethink replacing criminal charges with deferred prosecution agreements. The group warns that if DPAs are offered, that will allow banks and other companies to engage in misconduct and risky behavior without facing criminal charges. Details inside.

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.

Tom Hayes, once a “star trader” at UBS and Citigroup and the first to stand trial in the Libor scandal, has been charged with eight counts of conspiracy to manipulate Libor and will serve 14 years in prison. This case serves as a major turning point for the U.K. Serious Fraud Office as its reputation was at stake for the successful prosecution of Hayes. “The jury were sure that in his admitted manipulation of LIBOR, Hayes was indeed dishonest,” SFO Director David Green said. More inside.

The Serious Fraud Office has accelerated its probe into the accounting irregularities at Tesco, hoping to resolve the criminal investigation by year-end. The supermarket chain’s former chief executive Philip Clarke is one of many former Tesco executives being scrutinized by the agency in its investigation; Laurie McIlwee, former finance director, is being interviewed as a witness. Details inside.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office has dropped a two-year case against Japanese endoscope maker Olympus Corp., in the wake of a London court ruling that doctoring reports to auditors is not a criminal offence under English law. The move is a setback for SFO Director David Green, who has been putting the English law to test so more companies can be held accountable for their actions. Details inside. 

During remarks at the European Compliance and Ethics Institute conference in Prague, Alun Milford, general counsel for the U.K. Serious Fraud Office, provided some rare insight into the inner workings of the SFO. He also provided some hints on cases that are on the horizon, including “a LIBOR-fixing trial and a string of overseas corruption trials—all brought by the Serious Fraud Office.”

Following the outcome of a disciplinary panel, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) this month found that Sweett Group “did not at all times act with integrity” concerning a bribery case relating to its Middle East operations. Jaclyn Jaeger reports.

British engineering company Rolls-Royce has agreed to pay the United States nearly $170 million as part of an $800 million global resolution with U.S., U.K., and Brazilian authorities into a long-running bribery scheme. Jaclyn Jaeger reports.

The United Kingdom’s independent accounting regulator said it has commenced an investigation into the conduct of KPMG for audits it performed on Rolls-Royce.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office confirmed that it is investigating the activities of oilfield services provider Petrofac, its subsidiaries, and their officers, employees and agents for suspected bribery, corruption and money laundering.

The board of directors of oilfield services provider, Petrofac, recently announced a number of significant governance changes, amid a bribery and corruption investigation by the Serious Fraud Office. 

The Serious Fraud Office has charged Barclays and four individuals with conspiracy to commit fraud and the provision of unlawful financial assistance contrary to the Companies Act.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office confirmed that it has opened an investigation into the activities of London-based Amec Foster Wheeler for allegations of bribery, joining U.S. authorities in their bribery investigations into the energy services company.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office confirmed this week it has opened an investigation into suspected corruption by mining company Rio Tinto.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office said that it is conducting a criminal investigation into oil and gas exploration company, Afren, concerning secret agreements with their joint venture partners in Nigeria.

Three former senior employees of the F.H Bertling Group were today sentenced at Southwark Crown Court, the U.K. Serious Fraud Office announced.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office this week charged two individuals in relation to the ongoing Unaoil investigation.

Serious and organised crime costs the United Kingdom an estimated £24 billion a year, states a new government report setting out the threats posed by money laundering. With the report, the government relaunched its “Flag it Up” campaign to raise awareness and show how the legal and accountancy sectors can stamp out money laundering.

The board of directors of oilfield services provider Petrofac this week provided an update on the U.K. Serious Fraud Office's investigation into the company.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office has charged Barclays Bank with unlawful financial assistance contrary to the Companies Act in connection with an investigation it began in 2012.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office is seeking a retrial of three former senior managers of retail company Tesco, who are facing fraud and false accounting charges.

The Serious Fraud Office announced that it is set to recover millions lost in a corruption case concerning bribes that Griffiths Energy paid to Chadian diplomats in the United States and Canada.

The U.K. Serious Fraud Office is making artificial intelligence available to all its new casework, speeding up the investigation process—and already other enforcement bodies around the world are looking to the SFO to share its experience with AI.

The Attorney General’s Office announced that Mark Thompson, currently chief operating officer at the Serious Fraud Office, will be appointed SFO director on an interim basis pending the next permanent director becoming available.

Jeremy Wright, the Attorney General for England and Wales, on June 4 named Lisa Osofsky as the new director of the Serious Fraud Office.