Deja Vu all over again — Yogi Berra Yogi Berra said it best — we have seen this scenario before, with similar parties — corrupt foreign officials from Eskom (and Transnet), local partner requirements resulting in engagement...more
The McKinsey FCPA case follows several other significant cases involving South Africa. ABB and SAP resolved FCPA cases involving bribes in South Africa; on the SEC front, Gartner resolved a bribery case involving South...more
On December 5, 2024, DOJ announced a settlement with McKinsey and Company for $122 million for bribes paid to South African government officials to secure valuable consulting contracts....more
12/18/2024
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes
The Department of Justice Antitrust Division’s is playing catch up to the Criminal Division on compliance leadership. DOJ’s Criminal Division has issued four separate revisions to its Evaluation of Corporate Compliance...more
12/17/2024
/ Antitrust Division ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Electronic Communications ,
Government Investigations ,
Tone At The Top ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
What happens when a Chief Executive Officer becomes the architect of a global bribery scheme?
In this episode of Corruption, Crime, and Compliance, Michael Volkov delivers an in-depth analysis of the BIT Mining FCPA case —...more
Bit Mining, formerly 500.com, was a doomed company from the beginning, When a CEO orchestrates a bribery scheme with the assistance of other senior executives, shareholders and the public have little chance of ensuring a...more
12/13/2024
/ Bitcoin ,
Bitcoin Mining ,
Bribery ,
C-Suite Executives ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Popular ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Violations
In reviewing FCPA bribery fact patterns, it is a rare occasion when a company’s CEO is at the epicenter of the criminal conspiracy. In the BIT Mining case, standing atop all of the actors is the CEO Zhengming Pan, Bit...more
Earlier this year, Bit Mining and its CEO fell under the FCPA hammer. Bit Mining, formerly known as 500.com, resolved investigations with the Justice Department and the SEC for its corrupt scheme to bribe Japanese government...more
In an interesting political twist, the difference in approaches to antitrust enforcement between Democrat and Republican Administrations has been narrowing. It used to be that the difference in party control of the Antitrust...more
12/3/2024
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Compliance ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Horizontal Mergers ,
Merger Controls ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Vertical Mergers
Have you ever wondered how different cultures and generations engage with a company's code of conduct? Do employees across the globe really follow ethical guidelines in the same way, or are there stark contrasts depending on...more
We continue to hear about the impact of apparent or real conflicts of interest — whether in government, in business, or in other organizations. It is an issue of significant importance. Within an organization, a perceived...more
You often hear chief compliance officers speak about benchmarking. CCOs often reveal their competitive streaks when they collect information about other companies’ compliance programs. It can easily come off as a little...more
The Justice Department’s record of FCPA enforcement in 2024 has been disappointing. With all of the hoopla and pronouncements surrounding the global war against corruption, DOJ suggested that enforcement in 2023 and 2024...more
We should all admit something (among many things) — reading through factual statements of bribery offenses, the facts all start to meld together. Criminals are not as ingenuous or creative as they think, and the schemes they...more
Telefónica Venezolana C.A. (“Telefónica Venezolana”), the Venezuela-based subsidiary of Telefónica S.A. (Telefónica), the Spanish telecommunications company entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (“DPA”) and agreed to...more
What happens when a major defense contractor faces scrutiny for ethics and compliance violations?
In this episode of Corruption, Crime, and Compliance, Michael Volkov dives into the high-stakes world of corporate...more
11/17/2024
/ Arms Export Control Act ,
Bribery ,
Defense Sector ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
ITAR ,
Raytheon ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Statutory Violations
The Justice Department is about to undergo some fundamental changes. The 2nd Trump Administration will take some initial broad strokes designed to increase accountability and control of prosecutors and laws enforcement....more
The 2nd Trump Administration will mean significant change in foreign policy, most especially the importance of ending the Russia-Ukraine war, increased focus on Iran and its proxies, and aggressive use of trade policies and...more
11/13/2024
/ China ,
Compliance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Imports ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Relations ,
Trade Retaliation ,
Trump Administration ,
Ukraine ,
US Trade Policies
As the dust settles on the U.S. Election, companies are quickly analyzing the impact for businesses, federal civil and criminal enforcement priorities and the implications for ethics and compliance. When a new Administration...more
11/12/2024
/ Administrative Agencies ,
Compliance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Ethics ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Wars ,
Trump Administration
The SEC notched another FCPA settlement, continuing its steady pursuit and resolution of FCPA cases. In the meantime, the Justice Department has been silent in the FCPA enforcement arena.
In this episode of Corruption,...more
LRN consistently provides high-quality reports and important insights on ethics and compliance trends. Each year, LRN’s Program Effectiveness Report is anticipated as an important source of cutting-edge ethics and compliance...more
How does a respected financial institution turn into a criminal operation? In this episode of Corruption, Crime, and Compliance, host Michael Volkov dives into the record-breaking $3 billion settlement between TD Bank and the...more
The Justice Department’s global settlement included a significant False Claims Act resolution, resulting in a second deferred prosecution agreement (“DPA”) for a three-year term. A criminal information was filed in the...more
11/1/2024
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Defense Contracts ,
Defense Sector ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraud ,
Qui Tam ,
Raytheon ,
Whistleblowers
Raytheon’s comprehensive settlement included FCPA violations and failures to make required disclosures to the Defense Department concerning fees and commissions. This portion of the settlement was filed in the Eastern...more
11/1/2024
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defense Sector ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
ITAR ,
Raytheon ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Violations
Raytheon’s criminal conduct cut across a variety of topics — it is difficult to imagine but Raytheon’s misconduct occurred in separate parts of the company, involving violations of different laws. Like most cases, I always...more
10/31/2024
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Defense Sector ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraud ,
Leadership ,
Pricing ,
Raytheon