New SFO director vows quicker cases, stumps for whistleblower payouts

In his first public speech as head of the U.K. Serious Fraud Office (SFO), Nick Ephgrave made clear his law enforcement background will lead to significant changes in how the agency handles its cases.

“Under my leadership, the SFO will be bolder, more pragmatic, more proactive,” said Ephgrave on Tuesday in remarks delivered at the Royal United Services Institute in London. “… We need to be bolder and explore new ways of doing things.”

Ephgrave joined the SFO at the end of September, succeeding Lisa Osofsky. His predecessor’s tenure was marred by controversy, including the failure to secure the prosecutions of several large companies and their directors (e.g., Tesco, G4S) and follow established legal procedure in key cases (e.g., Serco, Unaoil).