Welcome to the award-winning FCPA Compliance Report, the longest-running podcast in compliance. In this episode, I am joined by Sam Tate, a partner at RPC. Sam co-authors the leading UK anti-corruption compliance textbook “Bribery: a Compliance Handbook.” He works closely with several FTSE 100, international, and privately owned entities and individuals concerning financial crime proceedings, investigations, and practical crime prevention programs. He recently led the settlement on the ground-breaking 11th and 12th UK DPA’s and conducted the independent investigation for the Financial Times of allegations made by Wirecard against its reporters.
In this episode, they discuss the proposed Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill and how it could majorly affect companies not based in the U.K. The bill includes verification for all new and existing registered companies, directors, and persons and provisions making it easier for the National Crime Agency. Sam Tate predicts this will result in more focused prosecutions than Deferred Prosecution Agreements, although it should make settlements easier. This collaboration between the UK and the U.S. will be a lasting legacy of our time.
Key Highlights
Economic Crime Legislation in the UK [00:04:49]
The Potential Impact of a New U.S. Bill on Global Businesses [00:08:40]
The Cost of Increased Business Regulation [00:12:24]
Sharing Information and Improving Access between Regulated Entities and the National Crime Agency [00:16:34]
The Impact of US-UK Relationships on Prosecutions and Deferred Prosecution Agreements [00:20:49]
The Challenges of Settling Issues in the UK [00:24:36]
Notable Quotes
1. “So if you have a fraud offense, then a corporate doing probably doing any business in the UK, or having a presence in the business in the UK so that it could be one in the US, it could be one anywhere in the world, anywhere in the world with presence business in the UK, would be corporately criminally liable if it failed to prevent fraud unless it had a series of adequate procedures in place to prevent that.”
2. “It’s something we call the ‘guidance in mind’ test. They are the brains of the company, and they’ve got to be involved for the corporates to be criminally live criminally liable.”
3. “Bribery is defined in our legislation as offering something with the intention of causing another person to perform their duties improperly. Fraud takes a few forms; worth essentially is a deceit of one kind or another, sometimes with the abuse of trust or over opposition to trust.”
4. “It’s not entirely clear what that is because we haven’t had a ton of cases. But it’s a registered office, a large part of your business, or even a smaller part of your business, a trading arm, perhaps doing your accounts here. Probably something a little bit more than trading on the UK stock exchange, but not much more is enough to have a part of your business in the UK.”
Episode Links
Bribery: a Compliance Handbook
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