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Swiss-Based Commodities Trading Company Pays $661 Million for FCPA Violations

Posted  03/4/24
Type Writer Typed Out the Word "Corruption"
Last Friday (March 1), the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Swiss-based international commodities trading company Gunvor S.A. pleaded guilty and agreed to pay roughly $661 million to settle charges of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).  The DOJ's action stemmed from Gunvor's scheme to bribe Ecuadorean officials to secure business with Ecuador’s state-owned oil company Petroecuador. The...

Vatican Puts Out the Call for Whistleblowers

Posted  02/7/24
Vatican Building in Italy During Daytime
The Vatican wants to hear from whistleblowers.  This comes from the Vatican's recent release of a new Whistleblower Procedure, which outlines the Vatican's official enlistment of Church insiders to help keep the Holy House in order when it comes to financial fraud and corruption.  According to a post in Vatican News, the official news portal of the Vatican Holy See, the new procedure, which took effect last week...

Top Ten SEC and CFTC Recoveries of 2023

Posted  01/24/24
Foreign Exchange Graph
It was an active year for fraud enforcement at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).  Though by no means was it a record year for either regulator in terms of big-ticket wins.  Aside from the CFTC's $1.7 billion recovery from South African crypto company Mirror Trading for foul play with foreign currency transactions, the balance of the Top-10 recoveries was...

Top FCPA Recoveries of 2023

Posted  01/19/24
Mix of Foreign Currency Scattered Around
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) bars payments to foreign officials for any kind of business advantage, such as securing government contracts or other kinds of favorable business treatment.  The statute covers any form of consideration including gifts, meals, travel, and entertainment.  It also imposes strict record-keeping and internal control requirements to prevent falsifying company books and records...

Catch of the Week: SAP SE

Posted  01/16/24
Briefcase Full of Money
This week's Department of Justice (DOJ) Catch of the Week goes to SAP SE (SAP).  On Wednesday (January 10), the German-based software company agreed to pay roughly $220 million to settle DOJ and SEC charges of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) through bribes to government officials in South Africa and Indonesia. The FCPA bars payments to foreign officials for any kind of business advantage, such...

Catch of the Week: Freepoint Commodities

Posted  12/18/23
Government contract fraud whistleblower
This week's Department of Justice (DOJ) Catch of the Week goes to Freepoint Commodities.  Last Thursday (December 14), the Connecticut-based commodities trading company agreed to pay roughly $98 million to settle government charges it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by paying bribes to Brazilian government officials.  The company also agreed to disgorge roughly $7.6 million to the Commodity Futures...

3M to Pay $6.5 Million for Foreign Bribery Charges

Posted  08/29/23
Businessman Examining Books and Records
On Friday (August 25), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that Minnesota-based global manufacturer 3M Company agreed to pay $6.5 million to settle SEC charges of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).  According to the SEC Order finalizing the settlement, the SEC found that employees of 3M's wholly-owned Chinese subsidiary provided improper consideration to Chinese officials of...

Celebrating Whistleblowers on World Whistleblower Day

Posted  06/23/23
Person Standing and their Shadow Displayed as Superhero
Today (June 23) is World Whistleblower Day.  It was originally created in 2019 by a group of NGOs to raise global awareness of the critical role whistleblowers play in combatting fraud and corruption.  One of the principal groups behind the special day, and the one that promotes it the most widely, is Transparency International.  It is the independent, not-for-profit NGO  dedicated to stopping corruption and...

Ontario Securities Commission Report on Successful First 5 Years of its Whistleblower Program Shows $43M in Total Sanctions/Voluntary Payments Thanks to Whistleblowers

Posted  03/13/23
Ontario Securities Commission Logo
Constantine Cannon applauds the Ontario Securities Commission Whistleblower Program on a very positive update on its performance from 2016 to 2022. Constantine Cannon attorneys have been following the development of the OSC Whistleblower Program with interest from the beginning, and we are pleased to represent participating whistleblowers. The March 9, 2023 report highlights the success of the OSC Whistleblower...

Top Ten FCPA Recoveries of 2022

Posted  01/13/23
International Currency
In recent years, the United States government has recovered billions of dollars going after companies that bribe foreign officials in order to further their business interests, a practice that violates the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Two principal United States government agencies, the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission, investigate and prosecute FCPA violations. Whistleblowers...
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