While FCPA enforcement against companies has been relatively quiet this year, despite a strong beginning to the year — the SAP case for $220 million; and the Gunvor case for $661 million — DOJ has been pushing a number of individual cases, some of which appear to be flowing from ongoing corporate investigations. DOJ is expected to announce a new, large corporate resolution for more...
Sorry to start a four-part series with a reference to music from our long-ago past. The Four Tops sang the “Same Old Song, with a Different Meaning” (released in 1965 — Video Here). So, how does that relate to third-party risks? Well, bear with me here for a little. Legal and Compliance bloggers, compliance vendors, prognosticators, Compliance Podcasters, and everyone in the Paparazzi have written,...
On the heels of the Gunvor FCPA settlement for $661 million, DOJ announced its settlement with Trafigura, the latest commodities trading company to fall under DOJ’s FCPA Sweep against the industry. Trafigura joined the list of international commodity trading companies to suffer FCPA enforcement actions — Vitol, Sargeant Marine, Glencore, Freepoint, and Gunvor. DOJ’s corporate resolutions are connected to individual prosecutions and guilty pleas of...
On the heels of the Gunvor FCPA settlement for $661 million, DOJ announced its settlement with Trafigura, the latest commodities trading company to fall under DOJ’s FCPA Sweep against the industry. Trafigura joined the list of international commodity trading companies to suffer FCPA enforcement actions — Vitol, Sargeant Marine, Glencore, Freepoint, and Gunvor. DOJ’s corporate resolutions are connected to individual prosecutions and guilty pleas of...
The Securities and Exchange Commission has gained well-publicized traction through its formal whistleblower bounty program. Only a small portion of these whistleblower reports involve FCPA, anti-bribery allegations. Notwithstanding this fact, the SEC whistleblower program has been an unquestioned success. Given this example, it is not surprising that the Department of Justice recently announced its plan to create its own whistleblower bounty program. In a recent...
In a recent blockbuster FCPA settlement, DOJ announced a $661 million resolution with Gunvor, one of the world’s largest commodities trading companies. DOJ’s settlement represents a “return” to its long-standing aggressive approach to FCPA enforcement. DOJ did not permit Gunvor to enter into a deferred or non-prosecution agreement. Instead, DOJ required Gunvor to plead guilty to one count of FCPA conspiracy. Gunvor entered into a...
The Department of Justice’s blockbuster FCPA settlement with Gunvor restores the credibility of DOJ’s pronouncements of DOJ’s commitment to aggressive FCPA enforcement. While I have questioned DOJ’s commitment to its corporate enforcement policy in recent high-profile settlements (ABB and SAP, in particular), DOJ’s Gunvor settlement of $661 million stands as the ninth largest FCPA settlement in history. DOJ’s settlement is proportionate to the misconduct and...
Gunvor’s bribery scheme is not very surprising nor ingenious. After all, a number of energy trading companies have been prosecuted for bribery over the years, including Glencore, Vitol, Freepoint. Numerous individuals have been prosecuted, convicted and some have cooperated. The global energy trading market presents numerous risk factors — large and valuable energy products (oil, gas etc.) are controlled by foreign-owned companies. All of these...
You have to give the Justice Department credit — after two slow enforcement years, DOJ is starting off 2024 with a relative “bang;” first, DOJ reached a large settlement with SAP in January, and now, DOJ has reached a blockbuster settlement with Gunvor S.A. for $661 million. Gunvor is one of the world’s largest commodities trading companies. DOJ’s settlement represents a “return” to its long-standing...
According to the terms of a superseding information made public by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York on or about February 13, 2024, Mauricio Gomez Baez (“Baez”)—a former Stericycle executive for Latin America—was officially charged with a single count of conspiracy for his role in a multi-year scheme to expand Stericycle’s business opportunities in the Latin American region (particularly, Mexico,...
