Anti-bribery certification of third-party intermediaries - A panacea or a box-ticking exercise?

In this article, I focus on the role of ABC certification and I look at this instrument from a legal and economic perspective, in order to shed light on how it may affect the deterrence of corporate bribery channelled through intermediaries.

1. Introduction

When companies invest abroad, they often use third party intermediaries for their business activities (e.g. to get a license or to win a public procurement contract).2 According to OECD statistics, intermediaries have been involved in 71% of foreign bribery cases.3 The regulatory framework addressing this phenomenon is made of a mix of mandatory and voluntary measures.

On the one hand, an increasing number of countries is criminalising corporations for bribes paid by their third parties. For instance, the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions (OECD Convention) and the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) provid...

Verder in dit artikel:

1. Introduction

2. Anti-bribery compliance certification: a signalling tool

2.1. Anti-bribery compliance certification: typologies

2.1.1. Self-reporting

2.1.2. Certification based on review

2.1.3. Audit based certification

3. Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

3.1. ISO standards for ABC certification bodies

4. Conclusions