Welcome to This Week In Compliance: GAN’s weekly news roundup, where we curate the latest stories on compliance and anti-corruption to keep you informed. This week, Oracle settled a second fine with the SEC. Read the full story and more news below:
Top Story
Oracle Settles Second SEC Bribery Fine
Oracle has agreed to pay USD 23M to settle a set of charges related to its second violation of anti-bribery laws. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleges that between 2016 and 2019, the software giant’s outposts in the UAE, Turkey, and India held “slush fund” reserves of cash with which it bribed government officials. The business subsidiaries falsified invoices and paid for government officials and their families to travel using the funds, an act that violated Oracle’s own policies, as well as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). The charge and settlement is the company’s second time being charged by the SEC.
Government
AI Hiring Practices Must be Audited or Face Fines, NYC Says
Companies that use AI software and algorithms to help in hiring and employment procurement decisions must conduct audits of their software or face fines. Such software can be used to filter out viable candidates among thousands of job application submissions, but have come under fire in recent years for their ability to introduce more discrimination, racial, and gender bias into hiring practices. According to a new law in New York City set to begin in January of 2023, companies that use AI software to assist in hiring must audit their programs to ensure that they are not discriminatory. If audits are not conducted, companies can face severe fines and penalties.
German Authorities Raid Yacht of Russian Oligarch
German police have raided the luxury megayacht of Alisher Usmanov, a Russian businessman who is accused of laundering hundreds of millions of dollars that were made from various organized crime operations. By utilizing various shell companies and offshore accounts, Usmanov was able to avoid having his assets frozen due to Western sanctions earlier this year, when Russia first launched its attacks on Ukraine. The yacht raid follows raids of Usmanov’s other properties and megayacht last month.
Business
New DOJ Policy Could Hold Compliance Officers Personally Responsible
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is committing to its new policy that could hold compliance officers personally responsible for the effectiveness of their organizations’ compliance programs. Under the policy, compliance officers must personally sign off on the effectiveness of their compliance programs, a move that seeks to hold more people personally accountable for their role in corporate wrongdoing. The DOJ re-stated its commitment to this effort at a conference this week, but compliance officers say that this policy makes their jobs more difficult and could lead them open to criminal prosecution.