The Securities and Exchange Commission finalized its long-awaited so-called “clawback rule” on Wednesday, which would require public companies to recover “erroneously awarded incentive-based compensation” on a wide range of executive officers following a restatement due to misconduct. The SEC had reopened its comment period in June concerning the proposed clawback Read More
In a first-of-its-kind resolution with the Department of Justice, Google has agreed to reform and upgrade its compliance program in a way that ensures “timely and complete responses” to lawful court orders, including subpoenas and search warrants, the Justice Department announced. “This agreement demonstrates the Department’s resolve in ensuring that Read More
Mattel has agreed to a cease-and-desist order and will pay a $3.5 million civil penalty to settle charges brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to misstatements the U.S. multinational toy company made in its third and fourth quarter 2017 financial statements. The SEC separately has initiated litigation against Read More
Seven directors among five companies have resigned from corporate board positions in response to concerns by the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division that their roles potentially violated the Clayton Act, the agency announced. Section 8 of the Clayton Act prohibits directors and officers from serving simultaneously on the boards of Read More
The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) has imposed the largest civil money penalty in its history when it hit a former audit partner with a $150,000 fine. It says the auditor, Jonathan Taylor, repeatedly misled PCAOB inspectors and investigators during two inspections and a subsequent investigation. It also barred Read More
Lafarge, a French multinational construction conglomerate, and its now-defunct Syrian subsidiary, Lafarge Cement Syria (LCS), pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide illicit payments and resources to two U.S.-designated foreign terrorist groups: the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) and the al-Nusrah Front (ANF). These companies further admitted to negotiating Read More
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has issued a final rule implementing a beneficial ownership information reporting requirement. The final rule, which implements the registration and reporting requirements of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), will require “tens of millions” of companies doing business in the United States to report information Read More
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has fined London-based Gatehouse Bank 1.58 million pounds ($1.8 million) for “significant weakness” in its financial crime systems and controls. According to the FCA’s Oct. 12 decision notice, between June 2014 and July 2017, Gatehouse “failed to conduct sufficient checks on its customers in countries Read More
A group of banking and business associations have filed a lawsuit against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) over allegations that it exceeded its statutory authority when amending its examination manual to include discriminatory outcomes. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, along with six co-plaintiff banking associations, filed a lawsuit Sept. Read More
Enforcement against foreign bribery on a global scale has hit an historic low, according to a report by Transparency International. In Transparency International’s report, “Exporting Corruption 2022,” 43 signatories to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention were assessed, along with China, India, Hong Kong SAR, and Singapore. Together, the countries analyzed account Read More
