Between 1990 and 2016, cross-border cartels affected sales of over $51 trillion worldwide. Indicatively, more than 100,000 companies were found liable for international price-fixing, with estimated gross overcharges exceeding $1.5 trillion. In light of the data provided, it becomes apparent that international cartels have a great impact, not only on consumer welfare, but also on economies as they deprive the latter of the benefits from international trade. On Thursday, May 20th 2021, the Economic Crime Series: International Cartels – Recommendations for an overall proportional punishment and a realignment of competition law event was held online, organised by Dr. Branislav Hock and chaired by Penelope Giosa who are both lecturers at the University of Portsmouth. Given the context of the seminar, speakers Dr. Marek Martyniszyn and Dr. Pieter Huizing presented their research work to shed light on the ways that existing regulatory gaps could be narrowed and an overall proportional punishment could be achieved in the area of international cartels. The Risk & Compliance Platform Europe has also covered this seminar via its website. This is part one of two articles on this event, which will focus on Dr. Martyniszyn’s presentation. Continue reading…

ProctorExam, European market leader in online proctoring, has been Security Verified by the ICT Institute, an independent IT audit firm. This achievement is a confirmation that ProctorExam goes beyond being just GDPR compliant. Guaranteeing data protection and security for both exam takers and organisations is a top priority. ProctorExam continuously investigates how to take the extra mile to meet that urgency. Security Verified is an open standard for information security similar to ISO 27001, with an emphasis on GDPR. Any company that handles valuable or personal data is obliged to take care of information security. Security Verified makes it easy for organisations to prove that they have taken such steps. It is a renowned and open standard for the information security of organisations, especially for innovative tech champions of today and tomorrow. The structure is similar to ISO 27001 and contains many of the control measures from ISO 27002. However, Security Verified integrated GDPR compliance even more, since these are the current legal requirements within the European Union. Continue reading…

by Michel Klompmaker

“The power of the largest multinationals can therefore still be corrected outside the boardroom. That is encouraging and is an impulse for the further alignment of sustainability and compliance in terms of testing and reporting.” said Michael van Woerden of DeComplianceMonitor, who we asked for comments on the recent decision of the District Court of The Hague in the case against Royal Dutch Shell. This ruling has not only attracted the attention of Dutch lawyers and climate activists, but this court ruling is also subject to discussion abroad. The largest multinationals have come under fire in recent weeks and those who think that the multinational has been created forever to defend the interests of only its own shareholders will be disappointed. The G7 meeting that is currently taking place in London will push ahead with regard to a minimum taxation for internationally operating companies and the tax shortcuts for the multinationals will be limited. In fact, the risk of significant worldwide reputational damage is more present than ever, now that the multinationals (and their directors) are under the magnifying glass, in case there is no ‘reasonable’ tax payment that has been made public. What should ultimately be regarded as ‘reasonable’ is not yet certain and is subject to debate. Continue reading…

The international role of the euro remained broadly stable in 2020. This was one of the main findings in the latest annual review of the international role of the euro, published recently by the European Central Bank (ECB). “The euro remains unchallenged as the second most widely used currency globally after the US dollar”, said ECB President Christine Lagarde. The share of the euro across various indicators of international currency was stable, averaging around 19% in 2020. More specifically, the euro’s share in outstanding international loans, in the stock of international debt securities and as an invoicing currency for extra-euro area imports of goods remained broadly stable. The share of the euro in global foreign exchange reserves declined, as did the share of the euro in foreign currency-denominated debt issuance and in outstanding international deposits. Continue reading…

The SOMI Foundation has sued TikTok on June 2, 2021 for violating privacy laws through a mass claim on behalf of parents whose children have used TikTok. The claim amount can reach more than € 1.4 billion. According to the foundation, TikTok is negligent when it comes to ensuring the safety and privacy of children on the platform. Internationally, this has already led to multiple deaths among minors. According to the foundation, it is therefore necessary to “intervene as soon as possible”. Continue reading…

Whistleblowers are the primary source of information, leading to successful policing on economic crime. Detecting organisational misbehaviour is challenging, especially when those that witness wrongdoings do not have sufficient knowledge and incentives on how, and whether, to disclose. The webinar series “Whistleblowing Demystified,” which was held on Tuesday, May 25th 2021 was aimed at giving confidence and guidance to companies to treat those speaking out with respect and dignity, whilst at the same time protecting the organisation from malicious accusations. There are many pressing ethical and legal questions related to whistleblowing that might affect the effectiveness of disclosure. The webinar was moderated by Elina Karpacheva from the European Compliance Center, and featured Ian Ross as the guest speaker of the morning. This event was also jointly organised by the European Compliance Center and the Risk & Compliance Platform Europe and endorsed by VUZF University in Bulgaria. This is part two. Continue reading…

by Frank Staelens

The priority of European business owners today is fighting the effects of the pandemic, understandably, but as a result, a creeping danger remains hidden under the radar. We are in whistleblower alert phase one! The transposition of the new EU whistleblower rules by the EU Member States into national law is expected by December 17, 2021. Immediately thereafter, it is expected that these rules will apply to private and public organisations with more than 250 employees. Organisations with fewer than 250 employees will have two additional years of grace, but they will also be subject to the new regulations, with some exceptions for small businesses with fewer than 50 employees. Continue reading…

Whistleblowers are the primary source of information, leading to successful policing on economic crime. Detecting organisational misbehaviour is challenging, especially when those that witness wrongdoings do not have sufficient knowledge and incentives on how, and whether, to disclose. The webinar series “Whistleblowing Demystified,” which was held on Tuesday, May 25th 2021 was aimed at giving confidence and guidance to companies to treat those speaking out with respect and dignity, whilst at the same time protecting the organisation from malicious accusations. There are many pressing ethical and legal questions related to whistleblowing that might affect the effectiveness of disclosure. The webinar was moderated by Elina Karpacheva from the European Compliance Center, and featured Ian Ross as the guest speaker of the morning. This event was also jointly organised by the European Compliance Center and the Risk & Compliance Platform Europe and endorsed by VUZF University in Bulgaria. This is part one. Continue reading…

The Commission recently published its guidance on how the Code of Practice on Disinformation, the first of its kind worldwide, should be strengthened to become a more effective tool for countering disinformation. It sets out Commission expectations, calls for stronger commitments by the signatories and foresees a broader participation to the Code. Based on a robust monitoring framework and clear performance indicators, signatories should reduce financial incentives to disinformation, empower users to take an active role in preventing its spread, better cooperate with fact-checkers across EU Member States and languages, and provide a framework for access to data for researchers. Continue reading…