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, the SEC removed a Trump-era whistleblower limit. Read the full story and more news below:
Top Story
SEC Removes Trump-Era Whistleblower Awards Limit
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has removed a limitation on whistleblower awards implemented by the Trump administration. The latest change would limit the SEC’s ability to deny whistleblower awards to tipsters that are also eligible for payouts from another agency. The amendment also limits the SEC’s ability to decrease the amount of an eligible payout.
Government
Court Unseals Documents Tied to FBI Mar-a-Lago Raid
A US court has unsealed documents related to the FBI’s raid of Mar-a-Lago, former President Donald Trump’s home. The first of the two records that were unsealed contained contextual information about the findings in the more than 33 boxes of classified documents seized from Mar-a-Lago. Among other findings, the document noted that many of the documents designated as classified were stored among miscellaneous other items such as books and magazines. In addition, the unsealed documents showed that more than 18 items retrieved from the former president’s home were designated as “top secret”, the nation’s highest security classification reserved for top-level information.
Wife of Former Malaysian Prime Minister Sentenced to 10 Years in 1MDB Case
Rosmah Mansor, the wife of former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for her involvement in a government contracts bribery scheme. The sentence came just days after former Prime Minister Razak was convicted for his involvment in the 1MDB scandal. Mansor is accused of taking bribes for providing government contracts for solar panels to be installed in rural areas. In addition, the former First Lady of Malaysia will have to pay a USD 215M fine.
Business
Mining Billionaire Testifies in Swiss Bribery Case
Beny Steinmetz, a Swiss billionaire primarily invested in the mining space, testified this week over accusations of his involvement in a bribery scheme. Steinmetz, along with his investment group partners Frederic Cilins and Sandra Merloni-Horemans, are accused of bribing Guinea officials over access to an untapped iron deposit in West Africa. Cilins was already arrested and served a two-year prison sentence last year for obstruction in the same case.