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For the second time in a few weeks, the stock market price of the largest Swiss company will plummet. Both times it is about corruption in Africa. In May, it was said that the British authorities were close to opening a bribery case against Glencore . Today, the company Zug itself had to announce that she had received a court order from the US Department of Justice. Investigators require the publication of specific documents and documents. According to Glencore, it is a matter of verifying that the company has complied with anti-corruption and anti-money laundering laws in Africa and South America.
These injunctions are often sent by US authorities if the company in question also appears in the investigation. But if the United States is pursuing a lawsuit against Glencore itself is not clear. As the company has announced, the requested documents relate to the operations of the group in Venezuela, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo from 2007 to today. Check the notice and, in due course, provide additional information, wrote Glencore.
Billions destroyed
Stock market news was very poor. At times, the price dropped 12 percent and reached its lowest point in more than eleven months. Stocks of the equivalent of five billion francs were destroyed. The storm, which is now unleashed on Glencore, had been announced since November 2000.
At that time, the research office of Tamedia, in association with a network of international journalists, made a report on the – "Paradise Papers". They show how Glencore has been negotiated by Israeli financier Dan Gertler in the Democratic Republic of Congo for licenses. Gertler is a close friend of Congo's president. Glencore's mining subsidiary soon received hundreds of millions of dollars worth of licenses.
Shortly after, the United States struck for the first time and put Gertler on the list of sanctions for corruption in the Congo. In addition, it was announced that Canadian securities regulators are investigating the Glencore subsidiary because these transactions were not announced by Gertler. The NGO Public Eye has filed a lawsuit against Glencore at the Attorney General's office in Berne on the basis of the Paradise Papers trial.
Copper and cobalt raw materials are among the components of electric vehicle batteries
. The US Department of Justice has already submitted several applications for legal aid to the Federal Office of Justice because of the Congo case. For example, it appeared for the first time that the United States had been prosecuting Gertler for years and that he was taking account of his accounts in Switzerland. The Americans' investigation against the Israelis has therefore already occurred while Glencore had already lent the financier hundreds of millions of dollars and had deeply mingled with him in Congo.
Finally, the goods giant was too hot. The Group has announced that it will no longer make payments to Gertler as it would now be subject to sanctions. But the financier fought and sued Glencore in Congo. Gertler always has the best relationship there. Legal conflict has become dangerous for Glencore.
About two weeks ago, the commodities giant finally broke in and announced that he would continue to pay Gertler and thus actively bypass US sanctions. Otherwise, Glencore could lose important mines in Congo. There, Glencore promotes copper and cobalt. These products are among the constituents of the batteries needed for electric cars and can bring huge profits to Glencore.
Fund paid more than 400 million dollars
To circumvent US sanctions, Gertler So just pay in euros, announced Glencore on June 15. There is evidence that the United States has not particularly appreciated that. Just hours after the Glencore announcement, the United States imposed a second wave of sanctions on Gertler – renewed for corruption cases. Especially spicy: Glencore announced on June 15th at eight o'clock in the morning that she would pay Gertler through her company Ventora Development Sasu. A few hours later, the United States announced its new sanctions list against Gertler. There is also a list of all Gertler companies, which are newly sanctioned. Including: Ventora Development Sasu. The United States has sanctioned the company that Glencore intends to pay in a few hours.
The documents the United States is now asking for concern Venezuela and Nigeria in addition to the Congo. In both countries, the group is involved in conflicts.
The mention of various countries in a subpoena recalls a case of the US Department of Justice in 2016. At that time, the American hedge fund Och Ziff pleaded guilty in court for corruption in several cases. States of Africa. The fund then paid over $ 400 million. The main point of charge was: business in Congo with an Israeli businessman who is also a friend of the president.
(Tages-Anzeiger)
created: 03.07.2018, 22:33
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