On September 4, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced a $25.2 million settlement with French pharmaceutical company Sanofi for violating the books and records and internal controls provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in connection with a scheme to bribe foreign officials to increase sales of Sanofi products.
The Sanofi settlement encompasses conduct by three Sanofi subsidiaries organized in Kazakhstan, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates. The Sanofi settlement follows a recent enforcement action by U.S. authorities against another French company—Société Générale—for FCPA violations. In announcing the Sanofi resolution, the SEC signaled its intention to focus further on bribery risk in the pharmaceutical industry.
Click here, to continue reading on the Cleary Enforcement Watch blog. This article was republished by the Journal of Investment Compliance.