- Chief Compliance Officer and VP of Legal Affairs, Arrow Electronics
By 
Jeff Dale2024-08-01T15:35:00
Staffing shortages that have plagued the U.K. Serious Fraud Office (SFO) are trending in the right direction since its new director took charge, with the anti-bribery agency forging ahead with initiatives to ensure its future sustainability.
The agency is focusing on re-energizing its work culture by “investing in our people and the tools they need to succeed,” Nick Ephgrave, SFO director, said in its annual report for 2023-24, published Tuesday.
Last year, the SFO admitted in its 2022-23 annual report of high vacancy rates leading to a mixture of temporary staff and counsel that would be unsustainable moving forward. Vacancy rates have eased since then, according to the recent report, falling from 23 percent to 16.3 percent. The agency noted a new methodology being used to calculate staffing shortages.
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The U.K. Serious Fraud Office last month published its five-year strategic plan outlining how it intends to improve information gathering and international cooperation, as well as its enforcement record.
The U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office said in a five-year strategic plan it’s “struggled to keep pace with demand” as ballooning casework shows no signs of slowing down.
When Nick Ephgrave of the Serious Fraud Office said in his maiden speech he favored paying whistleblowers in exchange for information, he might not have been fully aware of the implications, according to legal experts.
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.
