#Anti-Bribery and Corruption:
Corruption in Mongolia: Areva Pays a 4,8 million euros fine to avoid prosecution
On Monday 9 December 2024, the Paris Judicial Court approved the Judicial Public Interest Agreement (DPA) (Convention judiciaire d’intérêt public – CJIP) on bribery of foreign public officials concluded between Areva and Orano Mining, Areva’s successor, on the one hand, and the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office (Parquet national financier – PNF) on the other hand. Under this agreement, Areva agreed to pay a 4.8 million euro fine and Orano Mining agreed to undergo a 3-year compliance program under the supervision of the French Anti-Corruption Agency (Agence française anticorruption – AFA). The case concerns a contract between Orano Mining and Eurotradia International valued at 4 million euros for legal, financial, and commercial assistance in Mongolia, as well as a contract between Eurotradia International and a Mongolian consultant, who was paid 1.275 million euros and allegedly paid funds to Mongolian officials. > Read article
#White collar crime:
Benyamin Netanyahu examined at the Tel Aviv Court for the resumption of his corruption trial
On Tuesday 10 December 2024, the current Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, appeared in court in Tel Aviv for the resumption of his trial for corruption, fraud and breach of trust, which began in May 2020 and was interrupted by the war in the Gaza Strip in October 2023. M. Netanyahu is accused of accepting, jointly with his wife, more than 260 000 dollars’ worth of luxury goods in exchange for political favours, for attempting to negotiate more favourable media coverage from the publisher of a newspaper in exchange for a law that would have impeded the circulation of another newspaper, and for attempting to facilitate a merger sought by a close friend in exchange for favourable political coverage on the latter’s news website. Despite his legal team’s requests to postpone the hearing due to the war and the collapse of the Syrian regime, the court rejected these requests, while agreeing to reduce the duration of the hearings. > Read article
#Ethics and Compliance:
Swedish regulator slaps IPO-hopeful Klarna with $45 million fine over money laundering breach
The Swedish authority Finansinspektionen (FI) has imposed a fine of 500 million kronor (45 million dollars) on Klarna, a Swedish company specializing in online payment services, for serious breaches of anti-money laundering regulations. The investigation, covering the period from 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022, highlighted significant deficiencies in risk assessment, although no concrete cases of money laundering were identified. Klarna is considering an appeal, describing the decision as a matter of regulatory interpretation. Valued at 14.6 billion dollars, the company is preparing for an initial public offering (IPO) in the United States, announced in November 2023. > Read article
#International arrest warrants:
Syria: French justice system pursuing figures from the former Syrian regime, including Bashar Al-Assad himself
In France, 24 judicial proceedings are underway against former Syrian regime officials for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, according to the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office (Parquet national antiterroriste – PNAT). Among them, the emblematic case of the 2013 chemical bombings in Ghouta, targeting Bashar Al-Assad and his relatives, with arrest warrants issued in November 2023 and contested by the PNAT due to the personal immunity of the then sitting head of state, and the so-called “Caesar” case, based on photographic evidence of torture and executions. Other investigations concern major crimes, such as the abduction of Franco-Syrian citizens and deadly bombings of civilians, with identified military officials implicated. > Read article
