Trafigura and former exec charged over alleged bribery in Angola
Trafigura and its former chief operating officer have been charged in Switzerland over allegations of bribery, the country’s prosecuting authority announced today.
The firm has been charged with failing to prevent unlawful payments being made via a third party to a former employee of Sonangol, the Angolan state energy company, between 2009 and 2011.
The Sonangol exec allegedly received “bribes of more than €4.3m and $604,000”, the authority said.
Switzerland’s attorney general, which opened its criminal investigation in July 2020, has also announced charges against former Trafigura executive Mike Wainwright. A former Sonangol employee and former consultant to DT Group have also been charged.
Wainwright denies the allegations.
The commodity trading company, which is headquartered in Singapore, also faces ongoing corruption investigations in the US, Brazil and Switzerland.
Trafigura anticipates resolving the US Department of Justice investigation into improper payments made in Brazil “shortly”, the company said in a statement today.
Trafigura executive chairman and chief executive Jeremy Weir said: “We sincerely regret these incidents which breached our code of conduct and are contrary to our values. We have made extensive efforts over many years to instil a culture of responsible conduct at Trafigura.
“Since the period in question, we have significantly enhanced our compliance programme and controls. This includes mandatory training for all staff, ongoing investment in a global compliance team and our decision in 2019 to prohibit the use of third parties for business origination.
“Our compliance policies and procedures have been externally reviewed and found to meet relevant legal requirements and international good practice standards. These historical incidents in no way represent the company we are today.”