- Chief Compliance Officer and VP of Legal Affairs, Arrow Electronics
By 
Jaclyn Jaeger2023-04-19T13:16:00
A critical examination of Ericsson’s 2019 deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) and the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) determination the Swedish telecommunications company breached the agreement raises questions regarding the overall lack of accountability in a yearslong, multijurisdictional corruption scheme.
In December 2019, Ericsson agreed to pay $1 billion in total penalties between the DOJ and Securities and Exchange Commission to resolve a government investigation into violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Beginning in 2000 and continuing until 2016, Ericsson used third-party agents and consultants to “make and improperly record tens of millions of dollars in improper payments” to government officials in China, Djibouti, Indonesia, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam, according to U.S. authorities.
The alleged scheme involved sham contracts paid through false invoices managed in off-the-book slush funds. It came at a time Ericsson was reporting growth in its Middle East and North East Asia markets.
THIS IS MEMBERS-ONLY CONTENT. To continue reading, choose one of the options below.
News and analysis for the well-informed compliance or audit exec. Select an option and click continue.
Annual Membership $499 Value offer
Full price one year membership with auto-renewal.
Membership $599
One-year only, no auto-renewal.
Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson announced its independent monitor appointed by the Department of Justice certified its compliance program satisfies the requirements ordered by the U.S. agency following its 2019 Foreign Corrupt Practices Act settlement.
Ericsson shook up its reporting structure with the promotion of Head of Corporate and Government Investigations Rebecca Rohr to chief compliance officer.
Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson announced the appointment of Jan Sprafke as its full-time chief compliance officer.
USAA Federal Savings Bank has been hit with its third cease and desist order from the Treasury Department’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in the past five years for failing to correct unsafe and unsound banking practices.
Becton Dickinson medical device company will pay $175 million for “repeatedly” misleading investors about its Alaris infusion pump, a product the company knew was flawed and was sold without the required patient-safety approvals, the Securities and Exchange Commission said.
The Securities and Exchange Commission charged bankrupt fashion retailer Express with failing to disclose nearly $1 million in perks to a former chief executive, but did not levy a financial penalty thanks to its cooperation, the SEC said.
