Episode 324 -- Third-Party Risks and Sanctions Compliance
FINCast Ep. 39 – State of Russia Sanctions Two Years After the Invasion
Understanding the Additional Risks When Making a Ransomware Payment
Looking The Other Way: Recent Cases Of AML And Sanctions Failings In Scandinavia
Episode 118 -- Update on OFAC Enforcement and Lessons Learned
Answering the question of how much money a compliance and ethics program saves an organization when there’s been a violation is often a very difficult task, which presents a challenge in defending the investment in a program....more
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has released updated guidance concerning recent legislation that doubled the statute of limitations for violations of certain sanctions and export control...more
In today's digital landscape, sanctions enforcement has become a critical concern for Financial Institutions (FIs). The borderless nature of cyberspace can make it difficult to monitor and regulate activities that may breach...more
In this new era of aggressive sanctions enforcement, companies have to understand the red lines that define where criminal and civil enforcement risk increase. In contrast to the history of FCPA enforcement, DOJ and OFAC...more
With the beginning of the “New FCPA” era coined by DOJ’s Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, we now need to focus on third-party risk and sanctions enforcement. The law, the practice, and the risks are important and not just...more
While OFAC’s enforcement actions and guidance points to important steps exporters must take when relying on third-party distributors and other intermediaries, the “reason to know” and affirmative obligations to monitor resale...more
Companies rely on robust distribution chains as an efficient mechanism to enter new markets without requiring a significant investment. Additionally, companies may maintain parallel sales activities in markets between their...more
April was another month of robust trade actions aimed at foreign goods, export compliance, and heightened enforcement powers. DHS issued an enhanced strategy policy on the textile industry with a focus on de minimis...more
As DOJ, OFAC and BIS ramp up sanctions and export controls enforcement, they have continued to provide important compliance guidance. You have to give the enforcement agencies credit — on the one hand, they regularly warn of...more
Companies and their executives can reduce Department of Justice (DoJ), OFAC, and Commerce Department risks (and liability) by understanding and respecting the relationship between economic sanctions, voluntary...more
OFAC is getting ready for a big year. While managing a comprehensive set of sanctions against the Russian Federation in response to its Invasion of Ukraine, OFAC has demonstrated its ability to maintain aggressive...more
According to the Institute of Internal Auditors “Politics of Internal Auditing” (2015), 55% of chief audit executives were directed to commit important findings from their audit reports. 49% of chief audit executives were...more
For U.S. businesses, sanctions compliance has never been more challenging or more important. The U.S. has responded to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine with a broad range of sanctions targeting the Russian government, its...more
The United States manages more than three dozen separate economic and trade sanctions programs. Those programs target specified foreign governments along with thousands of named individuals, groups and entities in accordance...more
Life is always filled with surprises. Just when we thought 2023 was a “slow” FCPA enforcement year, DOJ and SEC announced a large enforcement action against SAP for approximately $220 million for FCPA violations in South...more
On December 13, 2023, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) announced an enforcement action against CoinList Markets LLC (“CoinList”) for violations of the Ukraine-/Russia-Related...more
As we have repeatedly noted in the context of other blog posts and webinars in which various representatives of The Volkov Law Group have participated, the violation of existing U.S. sanctions and export control regulations...more
In October, deputy attorney general Lisa Monaco made headlines when she announced a new leniency policy at the U.S. Justice Department for companies that disclose compliance violations discovered during mergers and...more
On November 21, 2023, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced its largest settlement in history with the virtual currency exchange Binance. This almost-billion dollar settlement is a part of a larger...more
Over the last several months, companies have become entangled in an increasingly complex web of new and expanded sanctions and export control restrictions related to Russia in response to its war on Ukraine. The current...more
Rewards programs have become ubiquitous in recent years. These so-called loyalty management programs exist to nudge customers or employees in a particular direction; a company’s workers might be inclined to exercise more...more
Companies faced with the decision of whether to voluntarily self-report sanctions breaches to law enforcement or sanctions enforcement agencies in the UK and the US can take some measure of comfort from recent comments made...more
The past few weeks have not been kind to 3M. The company recently settled with the SEC for $6.5 million to resolve alleged FCPA violations related to its Chinese subsidiary’s dealings with Chinese state-owned healthcare...more
Financial institutions and companies that are subject to oversight from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) need to prioritize compliance. OFAC has become increasingly active in recent years, and it is devoting...more
The Justice Department has touted the upcoming wave of corporate prosecutions for criminal sanctions violation as the era of “The New FCPA.” DOJ’s reference is intended to communicate a strong message – companies are going to...more