All Anti-Bribery articles – Page 52
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Blog
SEC Eyeing BNY Mellon on Anti-Bribery
BNY Mellon disclosed in a Form 8-K filing with the SEC last week that certain of its current and former employees have received Wells notices for potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. BNY Mellon said it received a similar Wells notice in the fourth quarter of 2014. Details ...
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Engineering Firm Nicked $3.4M on FCPA
Engineering and construction firm PBSJ has agreed to pay $3.4 million in financial remedies to the SEC for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by offering and authorizing bribes and employment to foreign officials to secure Qatari government contracts. Details inside.
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Meeting the World Bank in Enforcement Actions
When the Justice Department settled corruption charges against Alstom SA in December, it did not require a compliance monitor—because Alstom already had one, appointed by the World Bank. How does the bank’s integrity office work? What risks do you have? Lots. “You can be a perfect company today, but if ...
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Nortek Launches FCPA Probe
Nortek disclosed last week in a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it has launched an internal investigation into potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act concerning potential improper payments made by its Chinese manufacturing unit. Details inside.
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A Recap of FCPA Enforcement in 2014
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement actions brought by the Justice Department and the Securities Exchange Commission in 2014 held steady in comparison to the previous year's enforcement numbers, while the average price tag in penalty amounts continued to skyrocket. In 2014, the average total value of monetary resolutions in FCPA ...
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Lessons to Learn From the Alstom Fiasco
The record $772 million criminal penalty reached between the Justice Department and French power and transportation giant Alstom is yet another real-life example of corporate governance gone haywire. Abounding with cover-ups and an overall lack of due diligence, “The Alstom case is the antithesis of the hallmarks of an effective ...
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New Year, New Headaches for France’s Alstom
Image: Title: KronJan. 7—The $772 million bribery settlement between Alstom SA and U.S. regulators last month did not close the door on allegations plaguing the French industrial conglomerate. The company continues to face ongoing bribery probes in Poland and the United Kingdom, according to published reports, with former employees facing ...
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T&E Controls That Won’t Get You Busted
Image: Title: TillenThe SEC set the compliance community buzzing in December with two FCPA enforcement actions that hinge on improper travel and entertainment spending—an offense historically seldom seen in FCPA enforcement. Usually, “T&E abuses are add-on charges to an enforcement action involving a larger pool of improper activity,” says James ...
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More Cooperation, More Whistleblowing, More Prosecution
Image: Title: Berland2015 may be the year when overseas regulators hit their stride in prosecuting companies for misconduct, as tactics get more sophisticated and investigations come to fruition. In the United States, enforcement stemming from whistleblowers will be at full speed and pressure to cooperate with prosecutors will be high. ...
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Israeli Police Launch Biggest Ever Anti-Corruption Operation
Dec. 29—Israeli police have made more than two dozen arrests in what some say is the most significant anti-corruption operation in the country’s history. Officials have been questioned on suspicion of corruption, embezzlement of public funds, and illegal money transfers. According to police, “millions” of shekels of public funds were ...
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OECD: France Still Lags on Anti-Bribery Efforts
France still has several more improvements to make when it comes to combating the bribery of foreign public officials involving French companies, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's follow-up report to its Phase 3 recommendations. Of the OECD’s 33 recommendations, the group deemed four to be fully ...
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New UK Anti-Corruption Plan Omits Hideaway Homes
Britain’s ambitious U.K. Anti-Corruption Plan addresses everything from emboldened enforcement agencies to sharper criminal liability, but critics have jumped on one weakness: the plan’s mandate for a public register of beneficial ownership omits the housing market. Given the multitude of luxury homes in London owned by overseas trusts, that’s problematic, ...
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EU Raises ‘Loophole Risk’ With New AML Regime
Transparency advocates are giving tempered praise to a new anti-money laundering regime proposed this month by representatives of the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union. The new rules would mandate that member states create centralised registers of beneficial ownership behind companies, but outsiders such as journalists or ...
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Insider-Trading Risks Get More Complicated
Image: The appellate court decision to overturn insider-trading convictions of two Wall Streeters brings clarity to some aspects of the crime. It does not, however, reduce insider-trading risks. Yes, the ruling narrows the scope of such offenses, but “a compliance officer would have to be out of his mind to ...
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Alstom to Pay Record $772 Million for FCPA Violations
Image: French power and transportation giant Alstom SA agreed Monday to pay $772 million to settle criminal violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, setting a record for largest FCPA settlement ever. Deputy Attorney General James Cole called Alstom’s misconduct "astounding in its breadth, its brazenness and its worldwide consequences," ...
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Parker Drilling Unit Pays $267,000 for Bribery
Scotland-based oil and gas services company International Tubular Services, a subsidiary of Parker Drilling, last week agreed to pay a £170,000 ($267,000) fine to Scotland’s Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s civil recovery unit to resolve charges that a former Kazakhstan-based employee paid bribes to secure contract work from a ...
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Bruker to Pay $2.4 Million for FCPA Violations
Scientific instruments manufacturer Bruker will pay a $2.4 million penalty to the Securities and Exchange Commission to resolve charges of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by providing non-business related travel and improper payments to various Chinese government officials in an effort to win business. Details inside.
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OECD Has ‘Grave Concerns’ with Argentina’s Anti-Bribery Efforts
A report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Working Group on Bribery says it has "grave concerns" about Argentina’s commitment to fight foreign bribery. Argentina has no law to punish companies for foreign bribery or prosecute individuals who commit the crime abroad, the report says. Delays plague economic ...
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Swiss ‘FIFA Law’ Turns Sports Execs Into Politically Exposed Persons
Image: Dec. 17—After years of grappling with corruption allegations against international sports federations based within their borders, Swiss lawmakers have passed a measure to criminalize corruption in sports and add sports federation heads to the definition of politically exposed persons facing enhanced scrutiny from banks. Swiss legislator Roland Büchel, who ...
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Analogic Nears End of FCPA Probe
Analogic, an airport security and medical-imaging technology provider, has disclosed that it’s likely to face sanctions by the Department of Justice and SEC for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The potential sanctions concern certain questionable transactions involving Analogic’s Danish subsidiary BK Medical and certain of its foreign distributors. ...