At the end of the sorry Wirecard saga, James Freis may be one of the very few former senior employees who can hold his head high, writes Martin Woods.
Europe
Companies not reporting ESG initiatives are in the minority
Several reports highlight the growing trend of companies recognizing the value of aligning their business models with ESG concerns, acceding to the demands of shareholders, activists, the market, and the public.
U.K.’s SFO slapped down over attempts to flout jurisdiction rules
In another blow to the agency’s credibility, the U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office cannot attempt to force foreign companies to hand over evidence held overseas, according to a recent court ruling.
Europe handcuffed by current corporate liability laws; is change coming?
European countries have begun to question whether their laws around corporate liability need to be reformed. However, change may not be as rapid as first thought.
More Wirecard fallout: Top brass out at German finance regulator
Continuing fallout from the Wirecard scandal has led Germany’s finance minister to oust the top two officials at the country’s financial regulator, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin).
Spain, Italy setting new standard for GDPR enforcement
While big fines against big companies make headlines, Spain and Italy have flown under the radar as two of the most frequent enforcers of the GDPR, instead primarily focusing on smaller penalties. Might other countries follow suit?
Norwegian DPA warns Grindr of $11.7M GDPR fine
Norway’s data privacy watchdog issued gay dating app Grindr with a notice of intention to fine it NOK 100 million (U.S. $11.7 million) for sharing personal data with third parties without users’ consent.
Spanish DPA fines CaixaBank record $7.3M under GDPR
Spain’s data protection authority recently fined CaixaBank €6 million (U.S. $7.3 million) for misuse of customer data, the largest GDPR fine the country has handed out.
EU regulators beef up SCCs as temporary Privacy Shield alternative
The key data regulators that oversee the European Union’s strict privacy regulation agreed to a beefed up set of contractual terms to provide more clarity about the level of protection data transfers to countries outside the EU can enjoy.
SFO closes bribery probe into British American Tobacco
The U.K. Serious Fraud Office announced it has concluded without prosecution its investigation into British American Tobacco regarding whistleblower allegations of corruption in the conduct of business.


