Balli Steel execs found guilty of £120m fraud at collapsed trading firm February 2, 2023 Two Balli Steel executives have been convicted of using forged documents to mislead banks into lending the bankrupt commodities trader $150m (£122m). A jury at Southwark Crown Court today found Balli Steel executives Melis Erda and Louise Worsell guilty on six counts of fraud. Worsell, the managing director of Balli’s UAE business, and Erda, group [...]
Serious Fraud Office to call for overhaul of disclosure regime following trial issues September 4, 2022 THE UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is pushing for the UK’s current disclosure framework to be reformed and brought into the 21st century, City A.M. has learned. The head of the fraud agency, Lisa Osofsky, is expected to use a speech in Cambridge tomorrow to call for an overhaul of the current disclosure regime, which [...]
Nick Ephgrave marks one year at Serious Fraud Office. How has he fared as director? September 25, 2024 A former law enforcer was appointed as the director of the Serious Fraud Office one year ago. So how has Nick Ephgrave first year gone at the anti-fraud agency?
Cayman Islands fund manager convicted over role in £100m ‘no win, no fee’ investment fraud August 10, 2022 The founder of a Cayman Islands investment fund, that bankrolled ‘no win, no fee’ lawsuits, has been convicted of using a complex network of overseas trust to defraud investors of millions. Timothy Schools, investment manager at the Cayman Islands headquartered Axiom Legal Financing Fund, used investors cash to fund his luxury lifestyle, that saw [...]
UK strikes compensation deal with Nigeria following years-long global fraud probe February 22, 2022 Over £200,000 in compensation obtained by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigation into a company called Amec Foster Wheeler Energy will be transferred to Nigeria after a UK-Nigeria Memorandum of Understanding was signed today, the SFO said this afternoon. “In total, £210,610 will be transferred by the UK Government, with the funds supporting three key [...]
Glencore pays $1bn settlement to US authorities after admitting bribery in UK court May 24, 2022 Commodity trader Glencore has agreed to pay more than $1bn to US and Brazilian authorities to settle corruption investigations, after indicating it will plea guilty to bribery charges in the UK. Glencore said it will pay a combined sum of $1.06bn to the US Department of Justice (DoJ) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and [...]
Calls to overhaul ‘antiquated’ trial rules grow as SFO forced to drop G4S case March 14, 2023 The UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) on Friday said it would be dropping its case against three former G4S executives over claims they defrauded the UK government of tens of millions of pounds. The collapse of the SFO’s case came after G4S itself took responsibility for the fraud that saw it mislead Britain’s Ministry of Justice [...]
SFO outgunned by UK firms that spend millions more on lawyers to ‘buy impunity’ November 15, 2021 Companies under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office have spent up to ten times more than the fraudbusters on legal and investigation fees, causing major corruption cases to crash and burn, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism has found. The UK’s only complex fraud agency’s fight against economic crime is undermined by its lack of funding, [...]
Petrofac fined £77m for string of Middle Eastern bribery charges October 4, 2021 Petrofac has been fined £77m for seven separate charges of failing to prevent bribery in the Middle East, to which the London-listed oil services provider plead guilty last month. The penalty, for failing to prevent former Petrofac employees from offering or making payments to agents in relation to projects awarded between 2012 and 2015, is [...]
Former Serco boss calls for abolition of Serious Fraud Office May 10, 2021 A former Serco executive who was cleared of defrauding taxpayers by hiding millions of pounds in profits has called for the abolition of the white collar crime agency that pursued him. Simon Marshall, who was acquitted last month, said the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) did not have “anything to do with justice” and should be [...]