Designing Phase 5 of the OECD anti-bribery monitoring cycle: reflections from the Working Group on Bribery’s 2026 stakeholder consultation
In June 2026, the Working Group on Bribery convened a meeting of business representatives, defence practitioners, academics and civil society organisations in Paris to inform the process for designing Phase 5 of its peer review mechanism, following the gathering of written submissions between 22 April and 25 May. The authors took part in that exercise. This article records what was argued and what was heard, with the discussions reported in general terms and without attribution.
Released on Aug 6, 2026
Effective independent monitoring: from compliance oversight to transformation
This article explores the role of the independent monitor in assessing the effectiveness of integrity compliance programmes, based on experience of matters financed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group. Monitoring is presented not as a conventional audit but as a structured, risk-based, independent process that tests whether a company’s integrity framework is well-designed, implemented and sustainable.
Released on Aug 6, 2026
Third-party risk management: lessons from Chile’s expanding corporate criminal regime
Chile’s Economic Crimes Act (Law No 21,595), which was enacted in August 2023, extended corporate criminal liability to offences committed by external third parties who manage a company’s affairs with others. This article argues that the reform demands a risk-based approach to third-party compliance: rather than treating every supplier, contractor and intermediary alike, companies should identify which relationships can generate criminal liability and calibrate the necessary due diligence, contractual safeguards and monitoring accordingly. In this context, the author recommends the adoption of a continuous, dynamic model of third-party due diligence that spans across the entirety of the company’s commercial relationships.
Released on Aug 6, 2026
Expanding the net: corporate executive liability and practical safeguards under India’s evolving anti-corruption regime
This article examines the expanding scope of corporate executive criminal liability under India’s evolving anti-corruption regime. It traces how enforcement, once focused on the ‘demand side’ of public sector bribery, has shifted towards the corporate ‘supply side’ and the enablers of illicit financial flows. Analysing Sections 9 and 10 of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988, landmark rulings issued by the Supreme Court of India and the Corporate Laws (Amendment) Bill 2026, this article highlights the extent to which directors and managers now face direct exposure in relation to corruption offences and, thus, may be subject to mandatory imprisonment and automatic debarment. It concludes by providing some practical compliance safeguards for management personnel.
Released on Aug 6, 2026
The EU’s Anti-Corruption Directive: a new pillar of global anti-corruption enforcement
This article examines the European Union’s Anti-Corruption Directive (Directive (EU) 2026/1021), the first comprehensive EU criminal law framework to address corruption across all EU Member States. It analyses the Directive’s turnover-based penalty regime for legal persons, its dual-track corporate liability model and the role of compliance programmes as a structured mitigating circumstance rather than a defence to liability. The article compares this framework with the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the United Kingdom’s Bribery Act 2010, considers its alignment with Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Anti-Bribery Convention, as well as the OECD’s jurisdictional reach, and discusses the practical implications for businesses with EU exposure ahead of the June 2028 transposition deadline.
Released on Aug 6, 2026
How representing whistleblowers can be powerful for corporate defence firms
Laws that reward whistleblowers in the US and the UK have changed what it means to be one. Utilising these transnational whistleblower reward laws can be a useful tool and opportunity for white-collar corporate defence work, if lawyers and defendants are willing to use some creativity and outside-the-box thinking for their strategy.
Released on Aug 6, 2026
Report from the latest Annual IBA Anti-Corruption Conference – 17-18 June 2026, London
This article provides a summary of the key sessions that took place at the recent Annual IBA Anti-Corruption Conference, held in London in June, as well as opening remarks and speeches delivered at the event.
Released on Aug 6, 2026
Voices from the field – Wook Jin Rha
This series asks the Anti-Corruption Committee’s officers the most significant anti-corruption risks and challenges that are currently affecting their region. This edition is from Wook Jin Rha, the Compliance Subcommittee’s Compliance Programme officer, who discusses South Korea’s rapidly evolving digital forensic investigation capabilities for agencies, as well as the importance of the effective operation of the whistleblower protection system.
Released on Jul 29, 2026
Voices from the field - Stéphane de Navacelle
This series asks the Anti-Corruption Committee’s officers the most significant anti-corruption risks and challenges that are currently affecting their region. This edition is with Stéphane de Navacelle, the Committee’s Business Crime Committee Liaison Officer, who discusses the anti-corruption landscape in France, including challenges surrounding the difficulty of implementing anti-corruption policies and new multi-year legislation plans for French anti-corruption law.
Released on Jun 29, 2026
Voices from the field - Diego Ignacio Sierra Laris
This series asks the Anti-Corruption Committee’s officers the most significant anti-corruption risks and challenges that are currently affecting their region. This edition is with Diego Ignacio Sierra Laris, the Committee’s Regional Representative for Latin America, who discusses the challenges for Mexico in finding practical solutions in tackling misconduct and the need to ground investigative, compliance or regulatory strategy in a nuanced understanding of local contexts.
Released on May 27, 2026
Voices from the field – Lucas Passos
This series asks the Anti-Corruption Committee’s officers the most significant anti-corruption risks and challenges that are currently affecting their region. This edition is with Lucas Passos, the Committee’s Secretary, who discusses the anti-corruption landscape in Latin America and the Caribbean, including challenges surrounding politically exposed persons and the adoption of AI driven analytics into their systems at the World Bank Group.
Released on May 5, 2026
Voices from the field - Daniel Addo Asiedu
This series asks the Anti-Corruption Committee’s officers the most significant anti-corruption risks and challenges that are currently affecting their region. This first edition starts with Daniel Addo Asiedu, the Committee’s Regional Representative for Africa, who discusses Ghana’s uneven handling of cases of politically exposed persons and the country’s shift towards an anti-corruption landscape defined by digitised public financial management.
Released on May 5, 2026
A message from the outgoing Senior Co-Chair, Adriana Dantas
A message from the outgoing Senior Co-Chair, Adriana Dantas, reflecting on the events of 2025 and the successes of the IBA Anti-Corruption Committee.
Released on Feb 5, 2026
The new architecture of crime: what is next for the FPCA anti-corruption enforcement in Brazil?
This article analyses the institutional blind spot challenging Brazil’s anti-corruption authorities: white-collar professionals operating within the formal economy. Looking at the evolution of organised crime over the past 20 years, this article highlights how Brazil’s authorities can reimagine their approaches to tackle this vast issue.
Released on Jan 12, 2026
New proposal for EU Directive on combating corruption
This article explores the recent EU Directive focused on combatting corruption by replacing former legislative frameworks and applying a more interdisciplinary approach. It closes with a reflection on the reform’s urgency and how this shift can help resolve critiques against the EU.
Released on Jan 12, 2026
A major amendment to the criminal law in the Czech Republic: conditional non-prosecution of legal entities
With global enforcement priorities evolving, traditional drivers such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act are no longer the sole compass guiding corporate compliance. In jurisdictions including the Czech Republic, recent legislative developments – such as the introduction of conditional non-prosecution for legal entities – signal a shift toward more nuanced, locally tailored approaches to corporate accountability. This article explores how companies and counsel are navigating this changing terrain, maintaining robust cultures of integrity while adapting to new legal mechanisms that emphasise remediation, monitored compliance and proactive cooperation. In the absence of familiar enforcement tools, what does strategic current compliance look like – and how are legal professionals shaping its future?
Released on Jan 12, 2026
Judicial Public Interest Agreement concluded between SURYS and the French National Financial Prosecutor’s Office
On 8 July 2025, SAS Surys, a French company, entered into a Judicial Public Interest Agreement (CJIP) with the French National Financial Prosecutor’s Office (PNF) for acts of bribery of a foreign public official, misappropriation of public funds, and money laundering of these offences. The Agreement provides for a €18,363,007 public interest fine and €3,770,000 in compensation to the Ukrainian State for the damages suffered. This article provides an overview of the background to the Agreement and the impact of its implementation.
Released on Jan 12, 2026
Crypto and CBDCs in Brazil-Russia trade: regulatory developments, sanction risks and compliance strategies
The tightening of sanctions, increasing pressure on traditional payment systems and the concurrent advancement of digital financial technologies are reshaping the rules of the game for cross-border trade between Russia and Brazil. Since August 2023, Russia has been piloting the Digital Ruble, and since late 2024 it has been implementing pilot programmes for cross-border settlements using cryptocurrencies and digital assets. In Brazil, the first federal regulations on virtual assets have taken effect, while the Brazilian Central Bank continues to introduce a phased regulatory framework and integrate cryptocurrencies into the formal financial system.
Released on Aug 28, 2025
Compliance subcommittee ESG due diligence interviews: Itaú Unibanco
The following questions were prepared for a written interview with senior executives in charge of the ESG practices of their companies. The aim is to explore the integration of ESG (environmental, social and governance) factors into corporate due diligence practices, with a focus on compliance, risk management and regulatory preparedness. In this interview, representatives from Itaú Unibanco – a leading Brazilian bank with operations in 18 countries – give their thoughts on the banks’ commitment to the ESG agenda and how they assess and evaluate risk.
Released on Aug 17, 2025
Reporting security incidents in Brazil: when and how to notify the Data Protection Authority
Brazil is increasingly in the global spotlight when it comes to cybersecurity threats. With over ten billion cyberattack attempts recorded in 2023 alone, the country ranks among the most targeted worldwide. These incidents are not abstract: they affect sensitive sectors such as finance and healthcare – including data leaks involving over 220 million data subjects from national institutions and critical infrastructure operators.
Released on Aug 15, 2025
How AI can reshape anti-corruption compliance
The rise of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI, has captured the attention of legal and compliance professionals. Unlike generative AI, which primarily focuses on content creation, agentic AI ‘does’ rather than merely ‘creates’. This evolution signifies a shift from content generation to task execution and problem-solving, and holds great implications for compliance, where many tasks involve complex workflows and big data analysis that transcend simple content generation.
Released on Jun 9, 2025
New decisions in the Italian legal system regarding corruption in the healthcare sector
The fight against corruption in the healthcare sector in Italy is exploring new and interesting paths. Many pharmaceutical and medical device companies have been indicted in the last years for corruptive practices to ensure the utilisation of their pharmaceutical or medical products in hospitals.
Released on Jun 11, 2024
Top five takeaways on corruption perception in Latin America: insights from professionals across the region
Nearly ten years after it started, one of the biggest corruption scandals in recent history, ‘Lava Jato’, or Operation Car Wash, continues to wind its way through the Brazilian courts. In January 2024, a Brazilian Supreme Court judge suspended the payment of more than US$2bn by Novonor (formerly Odebrecht) as part of a leniency agreement where executives admitted to bribing Brazilian officials.
Released on Jun 9, 2024
Anti-bribery and corruption developments in South Africa
South Africa has, for decades, been grappling with the malaise of corruption. This has had a concomitant negative impact on public confidence, hindered economic growth through irregular expenditure and eroded the effectiveness of government institutions. There have, however, been notable developments in the country's efforts to update and enforce measures to fight corruption, which are traversed in this article.
Released on Jun 9, 2024
Focus on the CJIPs concluded at the end 2023 by ADP Ingénierie and SEVES Group/SEDIVER for the corruption of foreign public officials
On 4 December 2023, the Paris judicial court (tribunal judiciaire de Paris) approved the last two conventions judiciaire d’intérêt public (CJIP) (deferred prosecution agreements) for the corruption of foreign public officials, signed between the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office (Le procureur national financier or PNF) and ADP Ingénierie (ADPI) on the one hand and SEVES Group/SEDIVER on the other hand.
Released on Jun 9, 2024
Costa Rica strengthens its compliance and anti-corruption regulation
As part of Costa Rica's process of adherence to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), various laws have been enacted in order to strengthen the regulatory framework on compliance and anti-corruption. Part of these efforts are reflected in the recent enactment of two new laws that seek to strengthen our country's commitment to the fight against corruption and conform to high international standards, with special reference to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention.
Released on Jun 9, 2024
Observations on new trends in Chinese anti-corruption laws and practice
In the Chinese legal system, provisions addressing commercial bribery are dispersed across various legal instruments and judicial interpretations. Among the different legal authorities in China, the core provisions guiding anti-corruption can be found in the Anti-Unfair Competition Law and its draft Amendment (issued in 2022 and still open for public comment); the Criminal Law of China, along with its amendments; and the Supervision Law of China and its accompanying regulations for implementation.
Released on Jun 9, 2024
Chile's new Economic Crimes Law
In August 2023, a new law on economic crimes came into force in Chile (Law No 21.595 or the ‘Economic Crimes Law’), which entails the most significant change in terms of criminal regulation since the promulgation of the Criminal Code in 1874. Anti-corruption matters are no exception and are also covered under this new law.
Released on Jun 9, 2024
Key considerations for effective compliance programmes in the Brazilian healthcare sector
Healthcare may be considered as one of the largest and most complex sectors in the world. Different legal entities and professionals provide services, devices, facilities and insurance, or goods and services to facilitate the provision of healthcare to patients, usually under strong regulation in most countries.
Released on Jun 9, 2024
Due diligence corporate sustainability: challenges and opportunities for LATAM companies
Supply chains, the arteries of global commerce, have empowered businesses, especially multinational corporations. However, this expansion has also exposed vulnerabilities, including human rights violations and environmental damage. In today's interconnected economy, with increasing awareness of the social and environmental impact of business operations, the integration of human rights considerations into supply chain management has emerged as a critical aspect of corporate sustainability.
Released on Jun 9, 2024