Bribe, Swindle or Steal
352 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago - ★★★★★ - 357 ratingsAlexandra Wrage, president of TRACE, interviews luminaries in the field of financial crime, including bribery, fraud, money-laundering, insider trading and sanctions. Each week, Alexandra and her guests will discuss who commits “white collar crime”, how it works and what is being done to stop it.
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Episodes
News from the European Union, including the CSDDD
March 20, 2024 06:00 - 22 minutes - 34.5 MBThis week on Bribe, Swindle, or Steal, we listen in on the presentation of Nicola Bonucci, International Lawyer and former Director for Legal Affairs OECD, at the TRACE Forum in Annapolis. Nicola provides context for recent compliance news from the EU and discusses the adoption of the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive at a gathering of compliance experts just three hours after the news broke!
Russian Sanctions: Impact and Due Diligence
March 06, 2024 07:18 - 29 minutes - 44.1 MBPavel Verkhniatsky joins the podcast from Kyiv where he is the Managing Partner of COSA Solutions with particular expertise in sophisticated due diligence and cross-border investigations. We range from the very broad and geopolitical to the very specific as Pavel discusses the impact of sanctions on Russia, as well as common due diligence 'red flags'.
"Spin Dictators"
February 28, 2024 14:00 - 24 minutes - 37.1 MBDaniel Treisman, co-author of Spin Dictators: The Changing Face of Tyranny in the 21st Century, discusses the new generation of dictators and how they weaponize information, bully with legal action and mobilize enablers to stay in power. Originally posted on May 24, 2023
Enablers and the Dark Fleet of Oil Tankers
February 21, 2024 07:00 - 26 minutes - 39.9 MBZeke Faux joins the podcast to talk about the support and credibility provided to oil tankers violating sanctions by the companies that insure them. Zeke, together with Zachary Mider, wrote an excellent Bloomberg article earlier this month about one New York insurance company that insures a disproportionate number of these aged tankers accused of shipping sanctioned Iranian oil.
Leonid Volkov, Alexei Navalny's Chief of Staff
February 16, 2024 15:15 - 24 minutes - 25.2 MBIn honor of the extraordinarily courageous and principled life of Alexei Navalny, first poisoned with Novichuk and killed today in Polar Wolf prison, we are reposting our 2021 conversation with his chief of staff, Leonid Volkov. Leonid Volkov joins the podcast to talk about Putin's obsessive campaign against Navalny, who was first poisoned with Novichok and later imprisoned. Volkov also discusses the deep roots of corruption in Russia and how the west can support Russians determined to end...
Launching Today: Higher Ground: How Business Can Do the Right Thing in a Turbulent World
February 14, 2024 07:00 - 26 minutes - 40.1 MBAuthor, academic and former compliance professional, Alison Taylor joins the podcast to talk about her compelling new book. She describes the contradictions inherent in companies that talk about “doing well by doing good” and explains why corporate reputation management can’t be an end in itself and how trying to do less can be the best strategy. “You don’t have to join every conversation”.
Buying Fakes: Valerie Salembier
February 07, 2024 07:00 - 25 minutes - 23.9 MBValerie Salembier, former publisher of Harper’s Bazaar and founder of The Authentics Foundation, discusses the true cost of counterfeit luxury items: child labor, trafficked labor and organized crime. This episode originally aired on July 3, 2018.
Addressing the Demand-Side of Bribery at Last: FEPA
January 24, 2024 13:45 - 20 minutes - 30.7 MBTom Firestone, a partner with Squire Patton Boggs in Washington, discusses the new US Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (FEPA). Tom’s perspective is especially interesting as he previously served as the Legal Adviser at the US Embassy in Moscow dealing with financial crime there and, in 2018, he wrote an article on what was needed to tackle the demand side of bribery.
Transparency International's New Chair: François Valérian
January 17, 2024 07:00 - 23 minutes - 36 MBFrançois Valérian joins the podcast to discuss the platform on which he ran in TI's recent election, his priorities and his thoughts on the state of global anti-corruption efforts.
2023 FCPA Year in Review
January 10, 2024 07:00 - 43 minutes - 62.2 MBDan Kahn, former Chief of the DOJ’s FCPA unit and current partner with Davis Polk, talks us through the anti-corruption enforcement actions, trends and highlights of 2023.
China's Clandestine Police Stations
January 03, 2024 07:00 - 24 minutes - 25.3 MBLaura Harth with Safeguard Defenders joins the podcast to talk about the more than 50 illegal Chinese police stations operating around the world, including in the United States and Canada. These violate both the sovereignty of the inadvertent ‘host’ countries and the rights of the Chinese citizens abroad who are stalked and coerced to comply with government demands to return to China or risk the persecution of their families. Laura discusses her organization’s excellent report 110 Overseas: ...
Sam Bankman-Fried: Crypto's Madoff?
January 03, 2024 07:00 - 22 minutes - 24 MBJim Campbell, author of "Madoff Talks" and featured in the recently released Netflix documentary, "Madoff: Monster of Wall Street", joins the podcast to talk about FTX. Having studied both men, he compares what we know about Bankman-Fried and Madoff. This podcast originally aired onJanuary 25, 2023.
"Iceland's Secret: The Untold Story of the World's Biggest Con"
January 03, 2024 07:00 - 27 minutes - 40.8 MBJared Bibler joins the podcast to discuss his lively book about the complete meltdown of Iceland's banking sector and, as a result, its economy. It was a brazen scheme equal in size to three Enrons and, although it happened in 2008, it remains a timely cautionary tale for the banking sector and regulators today. Podcast originally aired: April 12, 2023
“White Collar Crime Explained”
December 20, 2023 07:00 - 25 minutes - 24.6 MBRandall Eliason talks about extortion, conspiracy, cover-up crimes and plea bargains – topics covered in his excellent new 24 lecture course available through Great Courses. He also takes us through some examples from recent headlines. This episode originally aired on September 29, 2020.
A Review of the Global Anti-Corruption News
November 15, 2023 07:00 - 36 minutes - 53.3 MBFor today’s podcast, we’re listening in on Pascale Dubois’ excellent and fast-paced review of the international anti-bribery landscape at the recent TRACE Forum in London. Pascale is a leading international executive advisor and independent expert who has been involved with anti-corruption efforts for two decades, including as the World Bank’s VP of the Integrity Vice Presidency.
Menendez Corruption Allegations – Round Two
November 08, 2023 07:00 - 29 minutes - 43.9 MBJessica Tillipman, Associate Dean for Government Procurement Law at George Washington Law School, joins the podcast to give a fantastic, detailed and fast-paced overview of the latest Menendez corruption allegations, interspersed with gold bars, bundles of cash and a Mercedes convertible. In the process, Jessica takes us back to the overturning of Former Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell’s corruption conviction and what we should expect in its wake.
The Death of Sergei Magnitsky: Bill Browder
November 01, 2023 11:52 - 29 minutes - 40.3 MBAs Russia’s war on Ukraine drags on, we revisit Russian corruption and its weaponization of financial crime in our 2017 interview with Bill Browder. He describes the brazen fraud and violence of Putin’s Russia, the death of Sergei Magnitsky, and the passage of the Magnitsky Act. You can also listen to our most recent interview with Bill, discussing his excellent book, "Freezing Order." (That episode was originally published in 2017.)
The DOJ’s Revised Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs
October 25, 2023 06:00 - 28 minutes - 42.7 MBThis week, we’re listening in on Jeff Clark’s excellent presentation at the recent TRACE Forum in London. Jeff is a partner in Cadwalader’s Washington office and discusses the DOJ’s revised ECCP, with an emphasis on corporate communications and compensation policies.
The State of Anti-Corruption Enforcement in the UK
October 18, 2023 06:00 - 32 minutes - 48.3 MBThis week, we listen in on the presentation of the inimitable Michelle de Kluyver of Addleshaw Goddard at the recent TRACE Forum in London.
Looking Back: The Siemens Scandal
October 11, 2023 06:00 - 20 minutes - 19 MBJessica Tillipman of George Washington Law School covers the highlights and key points from the Siemens bribery case of 2008. It was a startling case at the time and divided the international enforcement landscape into the world before and after Siemens. (This episode was originally published in 2020.)
Trust Us - Episode 4: Inside the Jersey Offshore Investigation
October 04, 2023 06:00 - 35 minutes - 52.5 MBToday’s podcast is the fourth and final episode in a four-part guest series produced by the Global Reporting Centre and European Investigative Collaborations. The series tells the fascinating and little-known story about a trove of leaked documents exposing the machinations of a trust company in Jersey, Britain’s notorious tax haven.
Trust Us - Episode 3: Inside the Jersey Offshore Investigation
September 27, 2023 06:00 - 23 minutes - 35 MBToday’s podcast is the third in a four-part guest series produced by the Global Reporting Centre and European Investigative Collaborations. The series tells the fascinating and little-known story about a trove of leaked documents exposing the machinations of a trust company in Jersey, Britain’s notorious tax haven.
Trust Us - Episode 2: Inside the Jersey Offshore Investigation
September 20, 2023 06:00 - 23 minutes - 35.4 MBToday’s podcast is the second in a four-part guest series produced by the Global Reporting Centre and European Investigative Collaborations. The series tells the fascinating and little-known story about a trove of leaked documents exposing the machinations of a trust company in Jersey, Britain’s notorious tax haven.
Trust Us: Inside the Jersey Offshore Investigation
September 13, 2023 06:00 - 36 minutes - 53.2 MBToday’s podcast is the first in a four-part guest series produced by the Global Reporting Centre and European Investigative Collaborations. The series tells the fascinating and little-known story about a trove of leaked documents exposing the machinations of a trust company in Jersey, Britain’s notorious tax haven.
Preserving Ukraine’s Heritage and Thwarting Money Laundering through Art
September 06, 2023 06:00 - 24 minutes - 37.5 MBYuliia Hnat, Co-Founder of the Museum of Contemporary Art NGO and Ukrainian Emergency Art Fund, and Irina Tarsis, Founder and Managing Director at the Center for Art Law, join the podcast to talk about all that is being done to preserve Ukraine’s tangible heritage during the Russian invasion and to catalog art and antiquities to ensure that they can’t easily be traded on the international market and can eventually be restored to Ukraine.
"Very Bad People"
August 30, 2023 06:00 - 24 minutes - 25.2 MBPatrick Alley, co-founder of Global Witness and author of Very Bad People: The Inside Story of the Fight Against the World’s Network of Corruption, joins the podcast to discuss the early days of his Global Witness investigations, how their efforts gained momentum and where we should be focusing our attention next. (This episode was originally published in 2022.)
Enabling the Enablers
August 23, 2023 06:00 - 22 minutes - 33.9 MBScott Greytak of Transparency International U.S. joins the podcast to talk about the many loopholes that permit U.S. lawyers to work for criminal actors as they exploit the U.S. financial system. He brings us up-to-date on the ABA’s recent change to its Model Rules of Professional Conduct and when we’ll see the ENABLERS Act revisited.
"Inside the Iraqi Kleptocracy"
August 16, 2023 06:00 - 26 minutes - 27.5 MBRobert Worth, a journalist previously based in Baghdad with the New York Times and author of A Rage for Order: The Middle East in Turmoil from Tahrir Square to ISIS, describes the deadly and intractable problem of corruption in Iraq. He discusses the role the United States and its pallets of cash played in this, but also the enforced sectarian apportionment of power—the Muhasasa—that ensures each group protects its fiefdom rather than acting in the best interest of the whole country. (This e...
“Fool Me Once”
August 02, 2023 06:00 - 21 minutes - 32.1 MBKelly Richmond Pope, Professor of Forensic Accounting at DePaul University, joins the podcast to talk about her new book: Fool Me Once: Scams, Stories and Secrets from the Trillion-Dollar Fraud Industry. She describes the three types of fraud perpetrators and why we blame the victims of fraud for their gullibility and I ask her whether lawyers or accountants are more at fault for rampant fraud!
Carlos Ghosn’s “Collision Course”
July 19, 2023 06:00 - 26 minutes - 26.8 MBHans Greimel and William Sposato, journalists and authors, join the podcast to discuss their book: Collision Course: Carlos Ghosn and the Culture Wars That Upended an Auto Empire. They cover Ghosn’s rise to hero status in Japan, his ultimate fall—arrest, detention and escape from the country—and the many compliance challenges raised by this strange story. (This episode was originally published in 2021.)
Pegasus and Compliance in the Age of Cyber Intelligence
July 05, 2023 13:00 - 24 minutes - 25.1 MBThe first episode of a two-part series, Chaim Gelfand, Vice President, Compliance, at NSO Group talks about managing compliance for a product that has, baked into its design, complex privacy, corruption and human rights implications. Because of the controversial nature of spyware, we hear from journalist Khadija Ismayilova in the second episode about the allegation that spyware was installed on her cell phone and her concerns about abuse of the technology. (This episode was originally publis...
Canada’s First Bribery Acquittal
June 21, 2023 06:00 - 15 minutes - 24 MBJessica Warwick in Norton Rose’s Ottawa office joins the podcast to talk about the Arapakota decision and what it means for anti-bribery enforcement in Canada.
“The Power of One”: Frances Haugen’s Decision to Blow the Whistle on Facebook
June 13, 2023 15:35 - 29 minutes - 43.4 MBData scientist, whistleblower and now author, Frances Haugen, joins the podcast to discuss her book, which comes out today. Frances describes her journey through tech as an algorithmic product manager, her growing understanding of the risk of radicalization and political violence that Facebook posed and her ultimate decision to blow the whistle when it became clear that Facebook, profiting from outrage, wasn’t going to fix itself.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas
June 07, 2023 06:00 - 27 minutes - 41.3 MBJesse Eisinger of ProPublica joins the podcast to discuss their investigation into the gifts, travel, tuition, rent and other benefits lavished on Justice Thomas directly—or indirectly for the benefit of family members—by right-wing billionaire, Harlan Crow. Jesse discusses the initial article, the tips they received with additional information after publishing it, and the political backlash to their reporting.
“Spin Dictators”
May 24, 2023 06:00 - 24 minutes - 37.1 MBDaniel Treisman, co-author of Spin Dictators: The Changing Face of Tyranny in the 21st Century, discusses the new generation of dictators and how they weaponize information, bully with legal action and mobilize enablers to stay in power.
Nicolas Niarchos at the TRACE Forum
May 17, 2023 06:00 - 23 minutes - 35.5 MBJournalist and author Nicolas Niarchos discusses the current state of compliance in battery metal mining, political and regional challenges in the industry, and his forthcoming book on the topic.
Compliance Challenges Surrounding Messaging Apps
May 10, 2023 06:00 - 26 minutes - 39.6 MBChuck Duross, former head of the DOJ’s FCPA unit and now a partner with Morrison & Forester, walks us through the many compliance challenges associated with employee use of messaging apps, together with a few suggestions on how best to manage the risk.
“The Art of the Bribe” under Stalin
May 03, 2023 04:30 - 25 minutes - 38.1 MBJames Heinzen joins the podcast to talk about his book, The Art of the Bribe: Corruption Under Stalin 1943-1953 and how bribery, extortion and embezzlement in Russia have changed—or not—over the last 70 years.
The Panama Papers: Six Years Later
April 26, 2023 13:08 - 19 minutes - 29.3 MBKevin G. Hall, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project’s North America editor, reflects on how the Panama Papers have shaped investigative journalism over the past six years and the biggest challenges journalists face today.
Paul Massaro at the TRACE Forum
April 19, 2023 14:13 - 29 minutes - 42.9 MBPaul Massaro of the U.S. Helsinki Commission provides an animated overview of current policy initiatives, U.S. support for Ukraine and what’s next in the fight against global kleptocracy.
“Iceland’s Secret: The Untold Story of the World’s Biggest Con”
April 12, 2023 06:00 - 27 minutes - 40.8 MBJared Bibler joins the podcast to discuss his lively book about the complete meltdown of Iceland’s banking sector and, as a result, its economy. It was a brazen scheme equal in size to three Enrons and, although it happened in 2008, it remains a timely cautionary tale for the banking sector and regulators today.
“Wilful Blindness: How a Network of Narcos, Tycoons, and CCP Agents Infiltrated the West”
April 05, 2023 06:00 - 27 minutes - 27.6 MBInvestigative reporter Sam Cooper describes the waves of drugs and laundered money from China crashing on Canada’s shores. Sam's book is “Wilful Blindness: How a Network of Narcos, Tycoons, and CCP Agents Infiltrated the West.” (This episode was originally published in 2021.)
Sam Bankman-Fried: Crypto’s Madoff?
March 29, 2023 06:00 - 22 minutes - 24 MBWith new foreign bribery charges announced against Sam Bankman-Fried this week, we’re revisiting our discussion with Jim Campbell, author of “Madoff Talks.” Having studied both men, he compares what we know about Bankman-Fried and Madoff.
Wildlife Crime
March 22, 2023 06:00 - 22 minutes - 23.2 MBOlivia Swaak-Goldman, Executive Director of the Wildlife Justice Commission, joins the podcast to discuss the impact of corruption and the role of organized crime in the illicit trade in wildlife.
What Spyware Means for Journalists and Civil Society
March 15, 2023 06:30 - 18 minutes - 20 MBToday’s podcast is the second episode in a two-part discussion of the compliance and human rights implications of spyware. After hearing from Chaim Gelfand at NSO Group last week, we asked Khadija Ismayilova, an investigative journalist in Azerbaijan who is alleged to have been monitored for four years by spyware installed on her phone, to speak to the privacy and human rights issues. (The first half of the conversation has some IT issues, but it clears up in the second half, so please stay...
What Spyware Means for Journalists and Civil Society
March 15, 2023 06:30 - 18 minutes - 20 MBToday’s podcast is the second episode in a two-part discussion of the compliance and human rights implications of spyware. After hearing from Chaim Gelfand at NSO Group last week, we asked Khadija Ismayilova, an investigative journalist in Azerbaijan who is alleged to have been monitored for four years by spyware installed on her phone, to speak to the privacy and human rights issues. (The first half of the conversation has some IT issues, but it clears up in the second half, so please stay...
Pegasus and Compliance in the Age of Cyber Intelligence
March 08, 2023 07:00 - 24 minutes - 25.1 MBChaim Gelfand, Vice President, Compliance, at NSO Group joins the podcast to talk about managing compliance for a product that has, baked into its design, complex privacy, corruption and human rights implications. Because of the controversial nature of spyware, we will hear from journalist Khadija Ismayilova next week about the allegation that spyware was installed on her cell phone and her concerns about abuse of the technology.
Maria Ressa on Holding the Line
February 22, 2023 07:00 - 27 minutes - 28.6 MBNobel Peace Prize winning journalist Maria Ressa joins the podcast to talk about corruption, disinformation and how to stand up to a dictator.
Doping in International Sports
February 15, 2023 07:00 - 32 minutes - 32.4 MBRob Koehler, WADA veteran and current Director General of Global Athlete, joins the podcast to discuss the epidemic of doping in sports, the imbalance of power between athletes and administrators and the IOC's startling decision to allow Russia to compete in the Paris Games in spite of its invasion of Ukraine.
China’s Clandestine Police Stations
February 08, 2023 07:00 - 24 minutes - 25.3 MBLaura Harth with Safeguard Defenders joins the podcast to talk about the more than 50 illegal Chinese police stations operating around the world, including in the United States and Canada. These violate both the sovereignty of the inadvertent ‘host’ countries and the rights of the Chinese citizens abroad who are stalked and coerced to comply with government demands to return to China or risk the persecution of their families. Laura discusses her organization’s excellent report 110 Overseas: ...