Bombardier faces SFO probe over Indonesia contracts November 5, 2020 The Serious Fraud Office has confirmed it is investigating aircraft manufacturer Bombardier over suspected bribery and corruption relating to contracts and orders from Garuda Indonesia. It comes after an Indonesian court sentenced Garuda Indonesia’s former chief executive, Emirsyah Satar, to prison in May for bribery and money laundering offences linked to the procurement of planes [...]
Treasury Committee demands update on bank signature forgery allegations October 15, 2020 An influential committee of MPs have demanded an update from the City watchdog and National Crime Agency on their investigation into allegations of widespread signature forgery at British banks. The Treasury Select Committee first asked the Financial Conduct Authority and NCA to investigate allegations that banks used forged signatures on an industrial scale, leading to [...]
Three former G4S executives charged with multiple counts of fraud September 8, 2020 Three former executives of a division of outsourcing firm G4S have been charged with multiple offences in relation to a multi-year scheme to defraud the Ministry of Justice. Richard Morris, former managing director of G4S Care and Justice Services and two ex-directors of its electric monitoring – Mark Preston and James Jardine – appeared at [...]
UK fraud office launches review after director implicated in Unaoil scandal July 14, 2020 The UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said yesterday it would launch a review after its head was rebuked by a London judge for being vulnerable to flattery from a freelance agent during a high-profile bribery investigation into oil consultancy Unaoil. Judge Martin Beddoe said SFO head Lisa Osofsky and senior colleagues had “taken the bait” [...]
AI is here and compliance needs to respond June 29, 2020 Automation and artificial intelligence (AI) are set to pose a unique challenge to the future workplace, including the compliance profession. How should compliance respond to such innovation? Handwringing over technology and automation replacing human beings in the workplace has a long history and is far from being unique to our times. When unveiling his automated [...]
Banknote printer De La Rue set to raise £100m amid job cuts June 17, 2020 De La Rue has announced plans to raise £100m in a placing to support it through the pandemic and implement a turnaround plan. In a separate final results statement, De La Rue reported underlying operating profits had slumped £60m to £23.7m in the year to 31 March. Revenues are down 17 per cent to £427m. [...]
SFO ends corruption probe into banknote printer De La Rue June 16, 2020 The UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has ended its 11-month investigation into banknote printer De La Rue, concluding it didn’t meet the sufficient threshold for prosecutors. Fraud investigators opened a probe into De La Rue last July over suspected corruption in South Sudan. In a statement the SFO said: “Following extensive investigation and a thorough [...]
Barclays squares up for latest legal battle as £1.5bn Staveley suit hits High Court June 8, 2020 Financier Amanda Staveley’s private equity firm today told the High Court it had received a “substantially worse” deal than Qatar when its syndicate invested billions of pounds in Barclays during the financial crisis in 2008, as it launched a civil case against the bank. PCP Capital Partners is claiming damages of up to £1.5bn for [...]
Audit watchdog closes investigation into Tesco accounting scandal June 8, 2020 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has announced the closure of its remaining investigation into accountants at Tesco, ending a six-year probe linked to an overstatement of profit by the supermarket chain. The FRC said this morning it was closing an investigation into Tesco’s announcement in 2014 that it had overstated profits by £263m, a figure [...]
FRC probes KPMG and PwC’s Eddie Stobart audits May 26, 2020 The accounting watchdog has opened investigations into audits by KPMG and PwC of haulage firm Eddie Stobart Logistics. In August, Eddie Stobart sacked its chief executive and suspended trading in its shares after an accounting investigation found its 2018 profits had been overstated by £2m. A review of the company’s accounts, undertaken by finance chief [...]