American cloud, software and computer technology major Oracle has been slapped with a fine of over $23 million by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to settle charges against it for bribing officials in India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Oracle had violated provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in America.

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

Oracle Corporation violated provisions of the FCPA "when subsidiaries in Turkey, the UAE and India created and used slush funds to bribe foreign officials in return for business between 2016 and 2019,” the US SEC said in a statement.

Oracle had been previously sanctioned by the SEC in connection with the creation of slush funds. Oracle had in 2012 resolved charges relating to the creation of millions of dollars of "side funds by Oracle India, which created the risk that those funds could be used for illicit purposes", informed the US regulator on Tuesday.

The SEC probe was undertaken with the help of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Capital Markets Board of Turkey, and the Emirates Securities and Commodities Authority.

"The creation of off-book slush funds inherently gives rise to the risk that those funds will be used improperly, which is exactly what happened here at Oracle`s Turkey, UAE, and India subsidiaries," said Charles Cain, the SEC’s FCPA Unit Chief.

"This matter highlights the critical need for effective internal accounting controls throughout the entirety of a company’s operations," he added.

Oracle subsidiaries in Turkey and UAE also used the slush funds to pay for foreign officials to attend technology conferences in violation of Oracle policies and procedures, as per the SEC order. 

It also found that employees of Oracle’s Turkey subsidiary had used these funds for the officials’ families in some instances, to accompany them on international conferences or take side trips to California.

"Without admitting or denying the SEC`s findingsa, Oracle agreed to "pay approximately $8 million in disgorgement and a $15 million penalty,” said the US regulator.

READ | Major US software firm to increase its workforce in India from 7,500 to 10,000 by January 2023

(With inputs from IANS)