Switzerland has indicted Trafigura, and three officials, for corruption in Angola, which took place more than 10 years ago.
The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) said that bribes of more than 4.3 million euros and $604,000 had gone to an Angolan official.
The statement said a senior Trafigura official had been involved in the payments. It also said the company had failed to take reasonable measures to prevent the payment of bribes.
“For the first time, the Federal Criminal Court is called upon to judge the criminal liability of a company for bribery of foreign public officials,” the OAG said.
Switzerland did not name any of the three officials at Trafigura or the former Sonangol Distribuidora CEO.
Compliance
Trafigura said it had wanted to resolve the investigation but that the OAG had opted for court. The trader “will defend itself at court, including in view of the compliance and anti-bribery and corruption controls in place at the relevant time”.
The statement from Trafigura noted the OAG had also charged its former COO, Mike Wainwright. The executive rejected the charges and said he would defend himself in court.
Trafigura shed further light on the OAG allegations, saying it had charged a former consultant at DT Group. Trafigura previously owned part of this joint venture.
The charges focus on ship chartering and bunkering in Angola, between 2009 and 2011. Sonangol Distribuidora was responsible for distributing and marketing petroleum products.
The alleged bribes involved the euro payment to a bank account in Geneva and US dollars in cash. The OAG also mentioned payment for a hotel and meal in Geneva. These, it said, “would amount to passive bribery of foreign public officials”.
The OAG accused the second and third defendants of active bribery, in that they paid – or allowed to be paid – bribes.
In exchange for the bribes, the Angolan official is alleged to have favoured Trafigura. In particular, the charges note eight ship chartering contracts and one bunkering contract. The OAG alleged Trafigura made a profit of $143.7 million from these activities.
Trafigura said the investigations stemmed in part from statements made by a former employee, Mariano Marcondes Ferraz, in a Brazil case.
Values
The trader’s CEO and executive chairman Jeremy Weir said the company regretted the incidents, which “are contrary to our values”. Trafigura has taken steps to improve responsible conduct, he said, and enhanced compliance.
In 2019, the company said it would no longer use third parties for business origination.
“Our compliance policies and procedures have been externally reviewed and found to meet relevant legal requirements and international good practice standards. These historical incidents in no way represent the company we are today.”
Trafigura has set aside $127mn to cover a US investigation into its Brazil operations. It has not disclosed any such plans for the OAG’s Angola case.
The Swiss charges come while Trafigura is facing embarrassment over a nickel deal. A London court has heard allegations that the trader failed to monitor nickel shipments – and may even have colluded in obfuscation.