With cybercrime on the rise, two U.S. Treasury Department components, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”), issued advisories on one of the most insidious forms of cyberattack – ransomware.… Continue Reading
On May 19, 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, President Trump signed Executive Order 13924, to provide regulatory relief for entities economically impacted by the pandemic. Section 6 of the Executive Order directed agencies to revise their procedures and practices in administrative investigations and enforcement in light of certain enumerated principles of fairness. It … Continue Reading
A New York federal judge recently held that a foreign bank could not challenge U.S. federal criminal jurisdiction prior to arraignment. US Allegation Halkbank is a Turkish majority state-owned bank. The United States alleged that Halkbank developed an illicit scheme comprised “of fraudulent transactions intended to deceive U.S. regulators and foreign banks” through which the … Continue Reading
Russian Duma Revisits Criminalization as Counter-sanction The Russian Duma is considering a bill that would prohibit media communications that reveal non-compliance with sanctions or facilitate imposition of sanctions and would also impose criminal penalties on those that disclose or transfer information to organizations “directly or indirectly” under the control of an “unfriendly state”, any company … Continue Reading
Anti-corruption has been a hot topic in Russia for some time. But recently, the Russian government has begun to take creative approaches in the fight against corruption. These initiatives are aimed at raising public awareness of corruption among the general public. What appears to be missing in this outreach is compliance guidance to companies in … Continue Reading
The Kingdom of Bahrain recently filed its statement of defence in an ongoing UNCITRAL arbitration in the Permanent Court of Arbitration (“PCA”) in The Hague against Iranian financial institutions Bank Melli and Bank Saderat. The statement of defence cites a Bahraini government audit evidencing a multibillion-dollar corruption scheme perpetrated by Bank Melli and Bank Saderat … Continue Reading
The first designations of individuals and entities sanctioned pursuant to the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (“Global Magnitsky”) are expected shortly. Congress enacted Global Magnitsky in late 2016, authorizing the President to seize property from and deny visas to: Foreign parties responsible for gross human rights violations committed against individuals who seek to promote … Continue Reading
