Clients updates / White Collar

The SEC is expanding the application of US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act provisions. It is commencing law enforcement proceedings against non-American companies operating outside the United States and against actions that merely raise concerns of acts of corruption. Companies with international operations must familiarize themselves with the FCPA’s provisions and prepare accordingly.

Law enforcement authorities in the United States are adopting a policy of lenient law enforcement measures against corporations that cooperate during investigations, document their activities, and implement compliance programs. This policy also applies to Israeli companies operating in the United States.

The Israel Securities Authority is seeking to expand its power. If its draft bill is accepted, this will have far-reaching consequences, as the ISA will have the power to investigate offenses related to fraud, bribery, money laundering, and cryptocurrencies (which the ISA considers to be securities).

At the end of March 2022, the Israeli Ministry of Justice published a draft amendment to the Prohibition on Money Laundering Law.

The proposed amendment seeks to grant supervisory authority to the Israel Money Laundering and Terror Financing Prohibition Authority (IMPA), comparable to that of the Capital Market, Insurance and Savings Authority (CMISA), over financial service providers for aspects of the prohibition on money laundering and terror financing.

In an expanded panel of nine justices, Israeli Supreme Court prescribed a set of rules concerning procedures and judicial discretion on the granting of search warrants of computers and cellular devices as part of an investigation. 

The Israel Securities Authority recently published a staff position on situations it believes indicate fraudulent securities trading and which justify opening a criminal investigation.

In October 2019, the Israel State Attorney published a new guideline on its office’s policy when considering the prosecution of a corporation, as well as on how it should determine its position on the manner of punishing corporations.

On December 2016 for the first time in Israel, an Israeli company was convinced for bribing a foreign public official. This is especially interesting due to the fact that this is also the first time the general prosecution in Israel based an indictment on Section 291A of the Israeli Penal Law, that was enacted in 2008, in the course of Israel’s efforts to join the OECD as a member country.