Hempel A/S, a coating supplier based in Denmark, has decided to settle allegations of bribery with a payment of $33.4 million to enforcement agencies in Denmark and Germany.
In April of 2017, Hempel A/S self-reported a number of illegal sales practices that were discovered in Germany, as well as other countries in Europe and parts of Asia. A statement involving this situation with Hempel A/S has stated for the record, “The unlawful practices were stopped immediately and the people responsible were replaced. Hempel has completed internal remediation, invested heavily, and established a robust compliance framework.”
Bribery, when it comes to the law, is the act of giving or receiving something of value in exchange of influence that one would not normally have influence over. While in some rare legal situations this may be a possibly acceptable action to take, in most cases bribery is a highly punishable offense in the corporate world. That being said, according to the International Monetary Fund, an estimated $1.5 to $2 trillion changes hands every year when it comes to bribes.
While based in Copenhagen, Hempel A/S is a global coating supplier that makes coatings used for protective and decorative purposes. They are a company that has been used to assist in making anything from containers to yachts, as well as other marine and industrial applications. With 6,500 people in 80 countries, this company has gained $1.5 billion in revenue within the last year.
With this concern over bribery, CEO, Henrik Anderson, has made it clear that these illegal sales practices are not something he stands by and that this was, “a direct attack on the integrity of Hempel’s customers, culture, values, and all our colleagues.”. The company as a whole seems to want to fully cooperate with the Danish and German authorities in resolving this issue and moving to a better future.
Anderson, when addressing the $33.4 million in settlement fees, states, “That is the price we have had to pay for being non-compliant. We have cleaned up and moved on,”.
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