Glencore to Cooperate with US on Corruption Investigation

Glencore Plc said wednesday it would cooperate with the US authorities after they demanded documents about the mining firm’s business in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venezuela and Nigeria as part of a corruption investigation.

The company said it had set up a committee of board members, including Chairman, Tony Hayward and independent non-executive directors, Leonhard Fischer and Patrice Merrin, to oversee its response to the subpoena from the Department of Justice (DoJ).

“The company will cooperate with the DoJ, while continuing to focus on our business and seeking to maximise the value we create for our diverse stakeholders in a responsible and transparent manner,” Hayward said.
“Glencore takes ethics and compliance seriously throughout the group,” the chairman said.

Reuters reported that the Switzerland-based Glencore received a subpoena from the DoJ last week requesting documents and records on compliance with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and money-laundering statutes.
The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act makes it a crime for companies to bribe overseas officials to win business.
The DOJ has so far not commented on the request.

Glencore shares had fallen 4.2 per cent to 313.29 pence by 0921 GMT, down 20 percent since the start of 2018 and close to one-year lows. The stock suffered its biggest one-day fall in more than two years after the subpoena announcement last week.

Responding to the share fall, Glencore announced a buy back worth $1 billion in an effort to soothe investors.