Webinar: Export Controls Compliance — Nuts and Bolts March 19, 2024, 12 Noon EST SIGN UP HERE The Justice Department, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) and the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (“DDTC”) have begun an aggressive civil and criminal enforcement program. DOJ’s National Security Division has announced its intention to prosecute criminal export controls cases. From the...
In this special episode of Corruption, Crime, and Compliance, Michael Volkov joins colleague and long-time friend Tom Fox as they delve into the intricacies of recent FCPA enforcement actions, shedding light on the evolving landscape of corporate compliance. From the ABB case to the SAP settlement, Michael and Tom dissect the nuances of voluntary disclosure, extensive remediation, and the shifting priorities of the Department of...
When it comes to FCPA enforcement, the Justice Department’s global focus for many years was on Asian countries, and in particular, China. This trend, however, has continued, but in the past few years, DOJ has brought a larger percentage of criminal cases against Central and Latin American entities and individuals. The reason for this focus reflects DOJ’s long-standing and closer working relationships with prosecutors and...
On February 7, 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced charges and a related cease-and-desist order (the “Order”) against TradeStation Crypto, Inc. (“TradeStation”) for failing to register the offer and sale of its crypto-lending product. In order to settle these charges, TradeStation agreed to pay a $1.5 million penalty. As part of the agreement, TradeStation did not admit or deny the findings. TradeStation’s...
Following the death of opposition politician Alexey Navalny, the Biden Administration announced a large swath of new and additional sanctions on the Russian Federation. The U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (”OFAC”), in conjunction with the Department of State and the Department of Commerce, added almost 300 individuals and entities to the Specially Designated Nationals List (“SDN List”). Later in the day,...
Christian Focacci is a leader in the artificial intelligence world and harnesses the capabilities for risk management. He is the founder and CEO of Threat.Digital, which has launched a new product DiligenAI. Threat.Digital is leveraging large language models and real-time data feeds to empower organizations to identify risk information confidently and efficiently, setting a new standard in risk intelligence. Mike and Christian discuss AI and...
In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court reaffirmed the whistleblower protections of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the case, Murray v. UBS Securities, LLC et al. (February 8, 2024). The Supreme Court’s decision reaffirms an ongoing trend — to protect and encourage whistleblower reporting as a means to enforce proper corporate governance. The European Union’s Whistleblower Directive and new United States whistleblower incentive programs continue to...
On December 31, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. signed the the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”) into law to address the ongoing exploitation of the ethnic minority Uyghur population by the government of the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”). Among other things, the UFLPA creates a rebuttable presumption that all goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part...
If companies operated with perfect governance mechanisms and controls, they would all be ready for the coming sanctions enforcement storm. However, that is not the corporate reality. Even after several companies are the subjects of these aggressive enforcement actions, corporate boards, senior risk managers and senior executives will turn to the chief compliance officer and ask — “do we have an effective sanctions compliance program?”...
There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm. Willa Cather I know I sound like a broken record. The Justice Department’s white collar criminal enforcement has been trending down over the last few years. The reasons for that are unclear — is it resources, difficulty and length of investigations or just lack of initiative? Whatever the cause may be, one...
