InfoBytes Blog
SFO Announces Charges Against British Multinational Bank and Four Former Executives in Qatar
On Tuesday, June 20, the UK Serious Fraud Office (“SFO”) announced charges against a British multinational bank and four former executives for conspiracy to commit fraud and provision of unlawful financial assistance in violation of the Companies Act 1985. These charges relate to the bank’s capital raising arrangements with a Qatar's state-owned holding company and a contract oil and gas land drilling provider in June and October 2008, as well as to a $3 billion loan facility made available to the State of Qatar acting through the Ministry of Economy and Finance in November 2008. According to the SFO press release, the investigation was first announced in 2012, and the individuals charged include a former Chief Executive Officer of the British multinational bank, a former Executive Chairman of the bank’s Capital Investment Banking and Investment Management in Middle East and North Africa, a former Chief Executive of the bank’s Wealth and Investment Management, and a former European Head of the bank’s Financial Institutions Group.
While no US-based charges have been announced, the SFO’s announcement comes on the heels of the bank’s March 2017 disclosure to the SEC in which the company stated that “the DOJ and SEC are undertaking an investigation into whether the Group’s relationships with third parties who assist the bank to win or retain business are compliant with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.”