Matt Stankiewicz, Senior Associate at the Volkov Law Group, rejoins us for an interesting posting on Facebook’s cryptocurrency plans. Matt can be reached at [email protected]. It was inevitable.  With the continuing growth of the cryptocurrency industry, major corporations were surely going to begin to figure out how best to profit from it.  Facebook has entered the game in a massive way with the announcement of...

As the blockchain industry continues to grow, we’ll begin to see traditional industries shifting to the blockchain to leverage the technology. Unstoppable domains is a company working to place web domains on the blockchain. Instead of traditional extensions like .com, .net, or .io. Unstoppable Domains will utilize .zil addresses as smart contracts on the Zilliqa public blockchain. This will first provide simple, human-readable crypto wallet...

The Justice Department has been criticized on numerous occasions about its approach to criminal investigations and prosecutions.  In a recent decision, the chief judge in the Eastern District of New York criticized DOJ for “outsourcing” criminal investigations to outside counsel who conduct internal investigations under DOJ review.  I have long predicted that courts would eventually impose criminal procedural protections in the context of criminal internal...

Last week, on June 25, 2019, TechnipFMC agreed to settle FCPA violations with the Justice Department for $296 million that occurred in Iraq and Brazil.  TechnipFMC was created in 2017 through the merger of Technip, a French company, and FMC Technologies, a Houston-based company. The SEC’s investigation is still pending. The combined FCPA settlement was the result of separate FCPA violations by each of the...

In yesterday’s posting, I examined the General Factors identified by OFAC to determine whether to initiate a civil penalty proceeding and the amount of any civil monetary penalty.   After analyzing these factors, OFAC determines the base penalty using a formula that depends on whether (a) the company voluntarily disclosed the matter; and (b) whether the violations are “egregious” or “non-egregious.” 1. Egregious case.  OFAC determines whether...

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control is an enforcement agency – it is not a regulatory agency.  That sounds like a lot of bureaucratic speak but it does have some real significance.  OFAC staff view themselves and act like an enforcement agency.  Yes, they regulate in the sense that they authorize general and specific licenses and provide guidance.  OFAC guidance is sometimes provided...

This is a tough posting – frankly, there are so many lessons learned from the Walmart case that they could fill a book, or an e-book at least.  I will focus on some of the big issues. Walmart should breathe a sigh of relief.  The compliance cloud hanging over its heard for so long is now gone, except with one big caveat – Walmart has...

The Walmart case, from a big picture standpoint, represents a serious warning to all global companies committed to rapid international growth.  In the absence of a significant and sustained commitment to compliance, rapid international growth is bound to end up in a compliance breakdown, thereby threatening the ultimate success of any international business strategy.  Walmart is Exhibit A in the explanation of how a successful...

Our long national nightmare is over – President Gerald Ford, August 9, 1974 So, $900 million and roughly 8 years later, DOJ and the SEC announced the end of the Walmart FCPA enforcement action.  (DOJ Here and SEC Here). The Walmart scandal, which was first reported in the New York Times, was a watershed moment in anti-corruption enforcement.  It marked a real turning point in...

Sometimes what folks label a “new idea” is not so much of a new idea as the application of an old solution to a new discipline.  I do not mean to be cryptic, but I am going to explain my point by referring to an area where I have had lots of experience – criminal law enforcement. In the wake of the terrible tragedy of...