Volkswagen completes monitorship; Deloitte family leave policy too good to be true?
Volkswagen gets a nod this week for successfully completing its 3-year compliance monitorship related to Dieselgate. Deloitte, on the other hand, lands on the wrong side of our list.
FinCEN seeking comment on AML program overhaul
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has proposed a plan to issue AML guidance every two years to encourage financial institutions to align their Bank Secrecy Act compliance programs with the agency’s enforcement priorities.
Assessing the fallout from coronavirus relief loan frauds
In both the U.S. and U.K., millions (perhaps billions) of dollars of coronavirus relief loans intended for small businesses is believed to have been misused. Legitimate businesses have been hurt as a result, writes Martin Woods.
EY chairman: Auditors should work harder to find fraud
The chairman and chief executive of Big Four auditing firm EY says auditors should do more to uncover fraud while conducting external audits, a topic the industry has historically been reluctant to tackle.
Daimler, U.S. authorities reach $1.5B proposed emissions settlement
Daimler AG and subsidiary Mercedes-Benz USA have reached a proposed settlement with U.S. authorities totaling $1.5 billion in fines and other costs to resolve emissions-cheating allegations.
Elizabeth Holmes might seek ‘mental disease’ defense at Theranos trial
Elizabeth Holmes, founder and CEO of now-defunct blood testing company Theranos, is exploring the idea of using “mental disease or defect” as part of her defense during her criminal fraud trial, which is set to begin in March.
Chapter 3: Carnival’s history as serial polluter catches up to it
This installment looks back at Carnival’s history of environmental law convictions, plea agreements with the DOJ, criminal fines, and environmental compliance plans (yes, there is more than one).
SEC charges chief compliance officer in stock fraud scheme
A New Jersey-based asset management firm and its president and chief compliance officer are facing SEC charges for “cherry-picking” profitable stocks for new and favored accounts that diminished returns for other clients.
Gut instinct keeps humans ahead of AI in fight against financial crime
As artificial intelligence evolves and takes on new tasks, whether it can develop the instinct of an experienced compliance professional will be key to its prevalence in the AML world, writes Martin Woods.
Credit to JPMorgan Chase in this week’s banking-themed naughty/nice list
JPMorgan Chase, Danske Bank, Deutsche Bank, and Bank of America all either “Nailed It” or “Failed It” this week.
DOJ: 50 individuals criminally charged for PPP fraud, with ‘more to come’
The DOJ, together with a coalition of law enforcement partners, announced criminal charges against 50 individuals who allegedly committed fraud in obtaining money from the Paycheck Protection Program.
Pactiv Evergreen discloses FCPA probe ahead of IPO
In its IPO filing, foodservice packaging company Pactiv Evergreen (currently Reynolds Group Holdings Limited) announced it might have potentially violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act regarding gift cards given in China.
Benefits of bribery: New study separates fact from fiction
While bribery can provide companies with major short-term gains, there is little evidence to support many other beliefs surrounding the “return on investment,” according to a new study.
AIG whistleblower claims in lawsuit he was fired for uncovering fraud
A former attorney for AIG has alleged in a federal whistleblower lawsuit that he was fired after he complained about fraudulent activity related to an attempt to spin off a separate legal services company.
Forget the status quo: Proactive AML is the path forward
The AML community is guilty of tolerating the failing status quo, and very few have dared to confront, challenge, and disrupt the inefficient and ineffective practices. A proactive approach could be the solution, writes Martin Woods.
Credit social media giants for prepping for election chaos
Silicon Valley’s social media heavyweights deserve a nod for “war-gaming” potential misinformation scenarios in advance of November’s elections, while McDonald’s again finds itself on our “Not Lovin’ It” list.
Best practices KYC: What to do when your client is in the headlines
How do we, as AML professionals, assess negative media alerts? It should start with a conversation with the client relationship manager, but it shouldn’t end there, writes Martin Woods.
FCA proposes expanding scope of financial crime reporting obligations
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority seeks comment on a new proposal that would widen the scope of its annual financial crime reporting obligations to include firms whose regulated activities potentially pose a higher money laundering risk.
Samsung heir indicted on market manipulation, accounting fraud charges
Lee Jae-yong, the heir and de facto leader at Samsung, was indicted by South Korean prosecutors on charges related to a 2015 merger of two subsidiaries and alleged irregularities in accounting practices at another subsidiary.
Q&A with Kara Brockmeyer: How pandemic has impacted third-party risk
In advance of her keynote at Compliance Week’s upcoming TPRM virtual event (Sept. 17-18), former SEC official Kara Brockmeyer discussed with CW the heightened risk third parties have during a pandemic and what companies can do about it.
What the Wirecard story tells us about red flags, healthy skepticism
How we came to learn about the fraud allegedly perpetrated by Wirecard offers important lessons in compliance and corporate governance, writes financial crime expert Martin Woods.
Herbalife finalizes $123M FCPA settlement with SEC, DOJ
Herbalife will pay $123 million to settle charges of violating the books-and-records and internal accounting controls provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in China.
Credit to KPMG for shining a light on fraud at Wirecard
A scathing report on the extensive fraud at German payment giant Wirecard had a compliance silver lining: KPMG’s by-the-books, transparent approach to a special audit helped bring that fraud to light.
We’re losing the war on AML, and big consultancies aren’t helping
Financial crimes expert Martin Woods writes that, in his experience, the big consultancy firms have made a substantial negative contribution to global AML endeavors.
Banking regs reemphasize rules for monitoring accounts of foreign officials
Five federal regulatory agencies issued a reminder to banks and financial institutions that they should continually monitor risks associated with the accounts of foreign officials.
Survey: Weak leadership contributes to employee pressure to bend rules
A new global business ethics survey released by the Ethics & Compliance Initiative seeks to explain what factors contribute to employee pressure to compromise ethical policies or regulations and how to reduce that pressure.
John Carreyrou at TPRM: How to spot a wolf in Steve Jobs’ clothing
John Carreyrou, the Wall Street Journal reporter who exposed Theranos and its founder Elizabeth Holmes as frauds, will be the keynote speaker on Day 2 of Compliance Week’s TPRM virtual conference Sept. 18.
‘I don’t know’ is among a compliance officer’s strongest statements
Martin Woods explains how saying “I don’t know” helped him to learn and elicit the truth during his time as a financial crime compliance officer.
Analysis: What to make of the DOJ’s rare FCPA opinion
The Department of Justice last week issued its first FCPA opinion procedure in six years. Experts weigh in on the ruling, the gap between opinions, and more.
Hat tip to HSBC for stopping money laundering, saving lives
If you’re in search of proof that what you do matters, look no further than the AML efforts of HSBC in preventing $500 million from reaching the bank accounts of criminals, writes Martin Woods.
Report: Trading activity by German regs spiked ahead of Wirecard collapse
Staff members of Germany’s financial regulator, BaFin, were reportedly buying and selling Wirecard shares at a suspiciously higher rate leading up to the collapse of the FinTech firm.
Federal banking regs clarify BSA/AML compliance violation response
Two strikes and you’re out, say four federal agencies to repeat violators of Bank Secrecy Act/anti-money laundering compliance requirements.
Basel Committee issues final AML risk management guidance
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision recently issued an updated version of its guidelines on sound management of risks related to anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism.
NRA shot itself in foot with poor compliance commitment
The New York Attorney General’s lawsuit to dissolve the National Rifle Association might not play out as intended, but it nevertheless exposes a number of systemic compliance flaws at the organization that appear to still need to be addressed.
Having difficult conversations is key to modern compliance
Now more than ever, difficult conversations are necessary and increasingly expected of compliance professionals. Financial crime expert Martin Woods has some ideas on how to make them less painful.
Interactive Brokers to pay $38M for SAR, AML failures
Interactive Brokers has agreed to pay $38 million in settlements with three regulatory agencies related to anti-money laundering lapses, including repeated failures regarding the filing of suspicious activity reports.
Common sense KYC: Customers should supply the knowledge
No one knows a customer better than the customer. As such, financial crime expert Martin Woods believes the onus should be on the customer to provide the required data to keep KYC logs up to date.
New York AG cites ‘culture of noncompliance’ in NRA fraud lawsuit
Central to the New York Attorney General’s lawsuit seeking to dissolve the National Rifle Association are allegations that the nonprofit’s “culture of noncompliance” allowed EVP Wayne LaPierre and three other NRA officers to steal $64 million from the organization over three years.
World Acceptance Corp. to pay $21.7M to resolve SEC FCPA case
World Acceptance Corp., a small-loan consumer finance company, has agreed to pay $21.7 million to resolve Securities and Exchange Commission charges for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
Eight years later, Zimmer Biomet FCPA case ends
Zimmer Biomet Holdings disclosed in a regulatory filing it has reached the end of its monitorship, eight years after resolving parallel settlements with the DOJ and SEC for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
SFO confiscates $7M from ex-Afren execs in fraud case
The U.K. Serious Fraud Office announced it has secured orders confiscating £5.45 million (U.S. $7 million) from two former executives of oil and gas exploration company Afren.
Firms must apply contact tracing rules to bank relationships
In order to prevent debacles like the one Deutsche Bank is embroiled in, there is a need to combine the processes of “know your employee” and “know your customer,” writes Martin Woods.
ICA, Mongolian Compliance Association launch bespoke qualification
The International Compliance Association announced a partnership with the Mongolia Compliance Association to offer a bespoke e-learning program to 12 professional associations and their 10,000-plus members in compliance-related roles.
What do FIFA chief, ‘Florida man,’ and Trump have in common? All Failed It this week
The lesson in this week’s edition of “Nailed It or Failed It?” is the more things change, the more they stay the same.
While compliance is in vogue, let masks be a symbol of safety in all situations
Now is the time to market compliance practices to customers who wear masks within our premises but drop the masks—and their guards—when answering calls and emails from the privacy of their own homes, writes Martin Woods.
SFO charges Airbus subsidiary for corrupt acts in Saudi Arabia
The U.K. Serious Fraud Office announced charges against GPT Special Project Management and three individuals concerning a criminal investigation that began eight years ago into allegations of misconduct in Saudi Arabia.
Och-Ziff investors reach $136M proposed settlement in FCPA case
Sculptor Capital Management (formerly Och-Ziff Capital Management) has “agreed in principle” to a $136 million settlement with former shareholders of Africo Resources and the DOJ for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
SARs overload slowing efforts to combat financial crime
For the global AML community, there is a need to recognize too much valuable time is spent filing too many low-value suspicious activity reports that will never become the subject of any law enforcement action, writes Martin Woods.
Johnson & Johnson discloses FCPA probe
Johnson & Johnson disclosed in a regulatory filing that it is fielding FCPA inquiries from the DOJ and SEC with regard to an investigation into potential bribery and anti-competitive practices in Brazil.
Goldman Sachs reaches $4B 1MDB settlement with Malaysia
Goldman Sachs reached a nearly $4 billion agreement in principle with the Government of Malaysia to resolve all criminal and regulatory proceedings related to three 1MDB bond transactions.