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Bribery:
Mike Lucas
Former Leighton Holdings boss Wal King denied he had knowledge of the construction giant’s allegedly corrupt dealings in Iraq. Shares fell the most in more than two years. The company said it was seriously concerned, but denied it had a culture of corruption. The Greens say recent high-profile corruption scandals suggest the corporate watchdog and police are not working together. One expert says Australian companies don’t take risk seriously enough. (AAP, BusinessDay, ABC Radio, Bloomberg, FastFT, press release, AAP, ABC)
The FCPA Blog explains why a compliance officer might leave their job and lays down expectations for independent U.K. directors. Tom Fox discusses the role of financial controls in a compliance program, and continues his podcast series. The FCPAProfessor continues his series on old enforcement actions. Mike Volkov focuses on the SEC’s return to fraud enforcement.
Cybercrime:
The arrest of Ross Ulbricht brought the darkness of Silk Road, the Amazon of drugs, into the light. How did the FBI close in on him? It was a bonehead mistake. The court documents reveal an alleged murder-for-hire plot, his rich online trail including a LinkedIn manifesto, and much more. The case also led to the largest-ever seizure of Bitcoins, the FBI said. (Wall Street Journal, NY Times, Rolling Stone, Reuters, Foreign Policy, Al Jazeera America, BBC, Slate, TechCrunch, Business Insider, Washington Post, NYMag, Business Insider, NPR, Buzzfeed, Guardian, WSJ Digits)
The head of Iran’s cyber warfare program was shot and killed, with two bullets found in his chest. The Revolutionary Guard said it’s investigating the death of an officer in a “horrific incident”, but denied media reports it was an assassination. (Daily Telegraph, Reuters)
The email service used by National Security Agency Edward Snowden shut down in the face of an FBI warrant demanding that it turn over the private SSL keys that protected all web traffic to the site. (Wired, NY Times)
The U.S. State Department’s system for delivering diplomatic cables lacks basic security years after the leaks from Chelsea Manning. (Buzzfeed)
McGuireWoods released a buyers’ guide for cyber insurance.
Money Laundering:
Digital currency firms must act fast to tame money-laundering risks. (American Banker)
Prior to the Silk Road seizure, Bitcoin buzz was on the incline among venture investors. After the bust, the currency plummeted in value. If this doesn’t kill Bitcoin, what will? But maybe there is an upside here for Bitcoin? (Reuters, Wired, Financial Times sub req,Bloomberg, WSJ Digits)
The head of Pakistan’s central bank told legislators he believes $25 million in cash is being smuggled out through the country’s airports every day. (Reuters)
Money-laundering compliance is one reason why Mexicans are sending less money back home. (McClatchy)
Sanctions:
Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has been forced to furlough nearly all its staff due to the lapse in congressional funding. (Daily Beast)
Sen. Mark Kirk (R., Ill.) slammed his Senate colleagues for postponing a new round of sanctions on Iran, calling it “appeasement.” (Buzzfeed)
Iran’s president called for a new “ping-pong diplomacy,” promising more Internet freedom. The West might drop its demand for Tehran to end all of its nuclear work, according to a European diplomat. (CNN)
Akin Gump ran a blog post about a recent SEC comment letter pertaining to disclosure requirements under Iran sanctions law.
Transparency:
A client alert from Allen Matkins discusses Sen. Carl Levin’s attempt, once again, on beneficial ownership.
Whistleblowers:
Is the SEC whistleblower program under-regulated? (Reuters)
Bigger payouts under the SEC bounty program are expected in the wake of a $14 million award issued this week. (Reuters)
General Anti-Corruption:
FIFA’s independent anti-corruption advisers meet for the final time next month after two years of work trying to modernize soccer’s international governing body after a series of scandals. (AP)
The latest in the Offshore Leaks series is here. (ICIJ)
The newest corruption scheme in Russia is the “hyperproject” associated with the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. (London Review of Books)
Could Afghanistan fall for the resource curse? (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
The Philippine president accused the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of misusing at least $19 billion in public funds by manipulating the budget and other means over the course of her nearly 10 years in power. She’s detained on plundering charges separate from the accusations made by the current president. Her lawyer said he’d heard the remarks but had no comment. (WSJ Southeast Asia Real Time)
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reporter Khadija Ismayilova asked the European Court of Human Rights to help end continued harassment and smear campaigns against her following a series of articles revealing the corrupt behavior of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and his family. (OCCRP)