In reviewing FCPA bribery fact patterns, it is a rare occasion when a company’s CEO is at the epicenter of the criminal conspiracy. In the BIT Mining case, standing atop all of the actors is the CEO Zhengming Pan, Bit...more
Earlier this year, Bit Mining and its CEO fell under the FCPA hammer. Bit Mining, formerly known as 500.com, resolved investigations with the Justice Department and the SEC for its corrupt scheme to bribe Japanese government...more
The Justice Department’s record of FCPA enforcement in 2024 has been disappointing. With all of the hoopla and pronouncements surrounding the global war against corruption, DOJ suggested that enforcement in 2023 and 2024...more
We should all admit something (among many things) — reading through factual statements of bribery offenses, the facts all start to meld together. Criminals are not as ingenuous or creative as they think, and the schemes they...more
Telefónica Venezolana C.A. (“Telefónica Venezolana”), the Venezuela-based subsidiary of Telefónica S.A. (Telefónica), the Spanish telecommunications company entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (“DPA”) and agreed to...more
What happens when a major defense contractor faces scrutiny for ethics and compliance violations?
In this episode of Corruption, Crime, and Compliance, Michael Volkov dives into the high-stakes world of corporate...more
11/17/2024
/ Arms Export Control Act ,
Bribery ,
Defense Sector ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
ITAR ,
Raytheon ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Statutory Violations
The SEC notched another FCPA settlement, continuing its steady pursuit and resolution of FCPA cases. In the meantime, the Justice Department has been silent in the FCPA enforcement arena.
In this episode of Corruption,...more
The Justice Department’s global settlement included a significant False Claims Act resolution, resulting in a second deferred prosecution agreement (“DPA”) for a three-year term. A criminal information was filed in the...more
11/1/2024
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Defense Contracts ,
Defense Sector ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraud ,
Qui Tam ,
Raytheon ,
Whistleblowers
Raytheon’s comprehensive settlement included FCPA violations and failures to make required disclosures to the Defense Department concerning fees and commissions. This portion of the settlement was filed in the Eastern...more
11/1/2024
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defense Sector ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
ITAR ,
Raytheon ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Violations
Raytheon’s criminal conduct cut across a variety of topics — it is difficult to imagine but Raytheon’s misconduct occurred in separate parts of the company, involving violations of different laws. Like most cases, I always...more
10/31/2024
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Defense Sector ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraud ,
Leadership ,
Pricing ,
Raytheon
Raytheon Company (Raytheon) — a subsidiary of defense contractor, RTX (formerly known as Raytheon Technologies Corporation) — agreed to pay over $950 million to resolve the Justice Department’s investigations into: (i) a...more
10/29/2024
/ Arms Export Control Act ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defense Sector ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
ITAR ,
Raytheon ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Violations
Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. (Teva USA) and Teva Neuroscience Inc. (“Teva”) agreed to pay $450 million to resolve two matters that allege Teva violated the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) and the False Claims Act (FCA). Teva is...more
10/23/2024
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Co-payments ,
Drug Pricing ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Fraud and Abuse ,
Generic Drugs ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Kickbacks ,
Medicare ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Price-Fixing ,
Teva Pharmaceuticals
The SEC notched another FCPA settlement, continuing its steady pursuit and resolution of FCPA cases. In the meantime, the Justice Department has been silent in the FCPA enforcement arena. In its latest settlement, Moog,...more
TD Banks’ complete compliance disaster was reflected in every aspect of TD Bank’s business and compliance operations. It is not surprising that TD Bank’s deficient BSA and AML compliance program was known by its Board of...more
10/18/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
BSA/AML ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
Money Laundering ,
OCC ,
White Collar Crimes
TD Bank’s $3 billion settlement included coordinated regulatory settlements with the Federal Reserve Board (“Federal Reserve”), The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”), and the...more
10/17/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
BSA/AML ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
FRB ,
OCC ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Violations ,
White Collar Crimes
“By making its services convenient for criminals, TD Bank became one,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. TD Bank joins the list of dysfunctional companies — add them to Wells Fargo, Wirecard, Volkswagen, General Motors,...more
10/16/2024
/ BSA/AML ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Guilty Pleas ,
Money Laundering
In yet another reminder of the scope of Justice Department enforcement powers, and an important demonstration of the risks of non-compliance, the Justice Department and relevant banking agencies announced a $3 billion...more
10/15/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
BSA/AML ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
FRB ,
Guilty Pleas ,
OCC ,
Popular ,
Statutory Violations ,
White Collar Crimes
How prepared is your company to handle the evolving risks of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies in its compliance program?
In this episode of Corruption, Crime and Compliance, Michael Volkov delves into...more
The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division has been aggressively pursuing civil enforcement actions. While criminal enforcement of antitrust laws has been depressed, DOJ has found success in pursuing civil and merger...more
10/8/2024
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Banks ,
Competition ,
Debit and Credit Card Transactions ,
Debit Cards ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exclusionary Clauses ,
Fees ,
Merchants ,
Monopolization ,
Visa Inc
How prepared is your organization to handle the evolving landscape of sanctions compliance?
In this episode of Corruption, Crime and Compliance, Michael Volkov dives into critical sanctions compliance cases and their...more
The SEC's recent settlement with Deere & Company for $9.9 million for FCPA violations is another textbook example of bribery schemes, which revealed the absence of a culture of compliance, and the circumvention of basic...more
Global companies face significant risks in their supply chains of compliance with OFAC’s economic sanctions regime. OFAC has emphasized the importance of conducting supply chain risk assessments and audits....more
9/26/2024
/ Audits ,
Compliance ,
Cosmetics ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Goods or Services ,
North Korea ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanction Violations ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Chain
The Deere case is an important reminder for companies to devote proper attention to ensuring robust integration planning for acquired companies. DOJ has provided important guidance on acquisition practices and the need to...more
The SEC’s recent settlement with Deere & Company for $9.9 million for FCPA violations is another textbook example of bribery schemes, which revealed the absence of a culture of compliance, and the circumvention of basic...more
Federal whistleblowers have been exposing health care fraud for years. The False Claims Act (“FCA”) contains robust whistleblower provisions and protections that reward whistleblowers with financial payouts. The process for...more
9/19/2024
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
CVS ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Fraud and Abuse ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Medicare Advantage ,
Whistleblowers