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Bribery & Corruption

Over 40 years of articles and reference material

A page dedicated to global, regional, UK and US anti-money laundering developments and initiatives.

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The 2024 Basel AML Index brings vital updates to its methodology, reflecting the growing complexity of global financial crime prevention

November 28, 2024

Fraud Indicators Integrated: Fraud is now recognised as a significant predicate offense to money laundering, with related indicators added. Methodology Refined: Outdated indicators, including those on corporate transparency and auditing standards, have been removed…

UNODC reports that opium production remains 93 per cent below pre-drug ban levels in Afghanistan

November 27, 2024

Finds that the majority of opium cultivation and production has shifted from the southwest provinces to the northeast, where two thirds of opium production was concentrated.  A second report included in the link reviews capacities and resources for the treatment of substance use disorders in Afghanistan.

OECD recent Assessments of Central Asia’s: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan urge stronger actions to combat high-level corruption

November 27, 2024

The reports show that most of these countries have anti-corruption strategies in place. Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan have enhanced the transparency of public procurement; Kazakhstan has implemented measures to improve business integrity, and Mongolia has significantly reformed its judiciary in line with international standards. However, overall progress in fighting corruption in these countries is limited, anti-corruption reforms are stagnating, and some countries, such as Kyrgyzstan, have moved backwards on several aspects.

GRECO welcomes steps taken by Moldova to improve corruption risks associated with the judiciary, but notes frequent use of emergency procedure for adopting legislation

November 26, 2024

In latest follow-up report to the 2016 mutual evaluation report, GRECO finds that 13 of the 18 Recommendations have now been implemented satisfactorily.

SEC charges BIT Mining with FCPA Violations in Connection with Bribery Scheme to Influence Members of Japanese Parliament

November 26, 2024

The SEC’s order finds that the bribery scheme involved illicit payments of approximately $2.5 million in the form of cash bribes, entertainment, and extravagant trips. The order further finds that the bribes were authorized by a 500.com senior executive and that, after the bribery scheme came to light, the company never entered the market.

US DoJ and SEC indicts Gautam Adani, Founder of Adani Group, and several senior executives, for allegedly paying over $250M in bribes to Indian officials to secure solar energy contracts

November 24, 2024

Gautam S. Adani and seven other business executives allegedly bribed the Indian government to finance lucrative contracts designed to benefit their businesses. Adani and other defendants also defrauded investors by raising capital on the basis of false statements about bribery and corruption, while still other defendants allegedly attempted to conceal the bribery conspiracy by obstructing the government’s investigation…

TI-UK analysis reveals £5.9bn in suspicious funds used to purchase UK properties via shell companies in UK’s Overseas Territories, with over 90% channelled through the British Virgin Islands

November 24, 2024

Corporate secrecy in the UK’s Overseas Territories plays a central role in enabling corruption, money laundering, and the evasion of tax and sanctions on a global scale. The research highlights the Overseas Territories’ role as global hubs for suspicious and illicit wealth. The secrecy provided by these jurisdictions have made them destinations of choice for corrupt individuals seeking to conceal criminal acts and enjoy the proceeds of their crimes with impunity. Greater transparency is essential to trace these financial flows, not only within the property sector but in the broader fight against corruption and money laundering. Of UK£11.1 billion (US$14.1bn) invested in 1,600 UK properties, since 2016, using funds with dubious origins, half (UK£5.9bn (US$7.5bn)) came via shell companies set up in UK Overseas Territories, with most (UK£5.5bn (US$7.0bn) from entities registered in the British Virgin Islands (BVI)…

UNODC releases a report on ‘Game Over: Exposing the linkages between corruption, serious and organised crime in sport’

November 23, 2024

It identifies illegal sports betting and match-fixing as major drivers of corruption, contributing to organized crime networks. The report calls for stronger international legal frameworks and cooperation to combat these issues, noting the complex, transnational nature of the problem. It highlights the impact on major sports like soccer, urging better policies…

SFO announces bribery investigation into defence firm, Thales

November 21, 2024

The Thales Group is headquartered in Paris and its subsidiary Thales UK employs over 7,000 staff in the UK across 16 sites. Investigators from the SFO and French authority Parquet National Financier (PNF) have informed the company of the investigation.

SFO launches an investigation into suspected bribery and corruption at multi-national aviation and defence electronics group Thales