This Week in FCPA-Episode 58, the Declination Edition
Weekly Brief: Lawyers Advised To Accept New Reality
Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services Group has reached a deal worth some $11.6 billion to buy the U.S. operations of BBVA, a Spanish lender. The mash-up, “one of the biggest banking deals since the 2008 financial crisis,”...more
UK regulators are probing ties between disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein and Barclays CEO Jes Staley. The bank’s board is so far standing 100% with Staley, who has expressed “regret” over his relationship with Epstein....more
A recap of Carlos Ghosn’s big media moment on Wednesday, which was short on the escape details everyone wanted to hear and long on accusations against other execs at Nissan and Japan’s justice system....more
Yesterday, I considered five Department of Justice (DOJ) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement actions. Today, I want to look at key FCPA enforcement actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)....more
This week I am considering the recent spate of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement actions brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) at the close of its fiscal year. Last week saw several...more
Barclays joined the club of global financial institutions settling FCPA violations for hiring of relatives of foreign officials in Asia. Barclays agreed to disgorge $3.8 million and paid prejudgment interest of nearly $1...more
The US government fiscal year ends today. Just as in the business world, where many companies try and clear out any unexecuted deals or open contracts, we saw the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) clear out three...more
OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sackler family, reached a deal this week with the state of Oklahoma in which they will pay “$270 million to avoid going to a state court trial over the company’s role in the...more
GE—still in streamlining mode—agreed yesterday to sell its biopharma business to Danaher (current CEO Larry’s Culp’s former company, btw) for a reported $21.4 billion in the form of $21 billion in cash and $400 million in...more
Qatar and ExxonMobil are teaming up on a $10 billion natural gas investment plan in Texas and America’s growing status as an LNG exporting power....more
As expected, Theresa May’s Brexit deal was roundly defeated in Parliament yesterday by an overwhelming 230-vote margin, the biggest House of Commons loss for a PM “in recent British history.” Following the vote, Labour Party...more
The Fed will wrap up its Open Markets Committee meeting today, and the recent dive on Wall Street has rather suddenly brought a bit of drama to what was a long-promised rate hike. Here’s a bit of background on what it’s been...more
A recap of Friday’s GDP numbers, which featured both a strong 3.5% growth rate and early signs that “the growth could cool in coming months”...more
Uber’s throwing in the towel on Otto, its self-driving truck unit that was at the center of an IP-theft scandal with Waymo and will shift its focus to autonomous cars....more
Facebook’s disappointing Q2 earnings (and, presumably, some pent-up scandal-fueled anti-‘Book sentiment) sent its stock into freefall yesterday, erasing more than $120 billion from the company’s market value as shares dove...more
In what can only be described as a Lazarus-like return, the Ex-Im Bank is reportedly nearly back on its feet again. The White House has chosen Kimberly Reed to helm the agency after prior nominee Scott Garrett was rejected by...more
The High Court has a daunting lineup of decisions yet to issue this year, but it’s checking one off the list with yesterday’s 5-4 holding upholding the right of companies to use arbitration clauses in employment contracts “to...more
It was a busy Thursday in the big pharma world, with drugmaker Shire rejecting a $60 billion takeover offer from Japan’s Takeda, while US rival Allergan disclosed that it was considering a bid of its own for Shire....more
The White House has chosen Columbia University economist Richard Clarida as Fed Vice Chair—the number 2 spot at the central bank. Clarida is a “monetary policy scholar” and former Bush II administration Treasury official....more
Keeping ahead of global anti-corruption trends is critical in today’s business markets. The Dorsey Anti-Corruption Digest, which puts global trends at your fingertips, puts you ahead. The deep experience of the Dorsey...more
More trouble for the embattled British PM Theresa May. We learned yesterday that Britain’s second-largest construction firm—Carillion—was forced into liquidation after amassing a staggering $1.35 billion in debt. The downfall...more
Barclays and a group of its former execs are facing charges of fraud by false representation by Britain’s Serious Fraud Office over deals they struck with Qatar in 2008 to avoid a government bailout....more
ICE Futures U.S. Settles Disciplinary Actions Against Three Respondents For Alleged Block Trade Violations For US $325,000 Combined Fine - ICE Futures U.S. settled two related disciplinary actions against three persons for...more
SEC Chairman Nominee Advances: Jay Clayton took another step to becoming chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission when the US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs approved his nomination for the...more
The Financial Conduct Authority published a Final Notice banning Mr. Andrew James Tinney from the UK financial services industry. Mr. Tinney was the Global Chief Operating Officer of Barclays Wealth and Investment Management,...more