Posts by Matt Kelly
Liquor Case Gins Up FCPA Lessons
Here’s something you don’t see every day: the Justice Department hit spirits manufacturer Beam Suntory with a $19.5 million fine on Tuesday for a bribery scheme in India — where the company got an extra punch in the pocketbook for failure to cooperate fully or to coordinate the Justice Department FCPA investigation with a separate…
Read MoreGoldman Sachs, FCPA, and Internal Controls
Now that we’ve all had the weekend to contemplate the massive Goldman Sachs FCPA enforcement action from last week (because that’s how we all spend our free time, right?), let’s return to an issue that’s been on my mind since the settlement was announced. How does a company strengthen an internal control, when that control…
Read MoreCompliance Jobs Report: Oct. 23
The Compliance Jobs Report this week has new compliance chiefs at Google and Hormel Foods; a slew of promotions; and several work milestones to note. We have job openings in healthcare, data analytics, and storage space — and our Meme of the Week goes out to Borat! As always, thank you to all the compliance…
Read MoreGoldman Sachs’ Giant FCPA Deal
All right compliance professionals, it’s here: Goldman Sachs has agreed to pay $4.3 billion to settle corruption charges for its role in the 1MDB scandal — making Wall Street’s premier investment bank responsible for the largest criminal penalty in FCPA history. U.S. regulators announced the news today, although rumors of a settlement had been swirling…
Read MoreCitigroup, Part IV: Compliance Risk
We finish our examination of the Citigroup enforcement action with a look at the issue most dear to compliance officers’ hearts: compliance risk, and how Citigroup needs to improve its compliance risk management function to meet regulators’ expectations. First, the backstory. On Oct. 7 the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency levied a $400…
Read MoreCitigroup, Part III: Better Board Oversight
Today we return to Citigroup and its $400 million regulatory settlement from earlier this month, a case that offers a cornucopia of lessons for risk and compliance professionals. This time around, we consider what Citi’s board will need to do to rectify the bank’s poor internal governance. First, let’s recap the case so far. The…
Read MoreJBS, Internal Controls, and the FCPA
Meat-processing giant JBS has agreed to pay $283.3 million to settle a brazen FCPA bribery scheme, with fascinating lessons for the compliance professional if you can endure the headache-inducing facts of the case. The Justice Department and the Securities & Exchange Commission announced the settlement Wednesday. JBS’ parent company J&F Investments, headquartered in Brazil, pleaded…
Read MoreCompliance Jobs Report: Oct. 16
A rather gossipy Compliance Jobs Report this week! We have news from the cryptocurrency world, a promotion at University of Wisconsin, and yet another compliance professional tapped to serve on a corporate board. Numerous work anniversaries to note, and job openings from tech to engineering to auto parts. Plus our Meme of the Week. As…
Read MorePCAOB Member Uncorks on Agenda
One of the five members of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board blasted his own agency on Wednesday, saying that the regulator’s plans for the next 12 to 18 months are “a tragic mistake” that ignore the needs of investors and undermine the credibility of corporate financial reporting. The statement came from PCAOB board member…
Read MoreMystery in Deaths of Four Liberian Auditors
We have a grim reminder from Africa of the perils that risk assurance professionals face while fighting corruption: the chief auditor of the government of Liberia was found dead under mysterious circumstances over the weekend, and is the fourth Liberian government auditor to meet a suspicious end in two weeks. According to local news reports,…
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