Bribe, Swindle or Steal

Federico Masera with the University of New South Wales and the Resilient Democracy Lab in Sydney joins the podcast to discuss his recent research, together with Giorgio Gulino, "Contagious Dishonesty: Corruption Scandals and Supermarket Theft." Their intriguing research uncovers a trend toward substantially increased customer theft at supermarkets in the immediate aftermath of local corruption scandals involving prominent public officials.

Tom Cardamone, President and CEO of Global Financial Integrity, joins the podcast to discuss the regulatory and enforcement challenges associated with flags of convenience. These range from trafficked labor to environmental violations and Tom highlights the inherent tension between substantial tax incentives on one hand and accountability on the other.

Leonid Volkov joins the podcast to talk about Putin's obsessive campaign against Navalny, who was first poisoned with Novichok and later imprisoned. Volkov also discusses the deep roots of corruption in Russia and how the west can support Russians determined to end the looting of their country.

Listen to the riveting first-hand story of a Unaoil executive who found himself at the center of a bribery scheme.

Walt Pavlo discusses the accounting fraud at MCI that led to his two-year prison sentence, his book "Stolen Without a Gun: Confessions from inside history's biggest accounting fraud,"and his second career with Prisonology

Peter Elkind tells the story of the Enron financial scandal; it's a timely refresher on that corporate disaster as the Trump Administration rolls back financial regulations.

Sarah Chayes describes her time in Afghanistan and discusses the link between corruption and national security.

Jack Ewing of the New York Times in Frankfurt discusses his excellent book, "Faster, Higher, Farther: The Volkswagen Scandal," and the outrageous fraud and cover-up uncovered by a handful of WVU students.

Craig Whitlock of the Washington Post describes the sleaze and corruption that compromised the top ranks of the Seventh Fleet.

Will Fitzgibbon of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) joins the podcast with an update on last year's FinCEN Files story, including a prison sentence for the whistleblower who leaked the information.

Author and business radio host Jim Campbell discusses his recent book about Bernie Madoff, his Ponzi scheme and his lack of remorse, based on extraordinary access to Madoff and members of his family and team. Jim's book is "Madoff Talks: Uncovering the Untold Story Behind the Most Notorious Ponzi Scheme in History."

Joel Bakan joins the podcast to discuss his books, and the films based on them. He outlines the fundamental conflict inherent in companies ostensibly committed to ESG principles while simultaneously driven by a legal requirement to maximize shareholder value. Episode resources: Mentioned at (03:30): The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power (book), by Joel Bakan, 2003 Mentioned at (03:30): The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power (film), 2004 Mentioned at (03:30): The New Corporation: How "Good" Corporations are Bad for Democracy (book), by Joel Bakan, 2020 Mentioned at (03:30): The New Corporation: The Unfortunately Necessary Sequel (film), by Joel Bakan, 2020 Mentioned at (11:11): Moneyland, by Oliver Bullough, 2019 Learn more about Joel's work here.

Investigative reporter Sam Cooper describes the waves of drugs and laundered money from China crashing on Canada's shores. Sam's new book is "Wilful Blindness: How a Network of Narcos, Tycoons, and CCP Agents Infiltrated the West."

Tom Burgis, investigations correspondent at the Financial Times and author of "Kleptopia", discusses the increasingly disturbing influence that kleptocrats exert internationally, who enables them and the flaws in our efforts to contain them.

The golden passports and visas industry boomed during the pandemic and attracted the attention of policymakers. This week, we're reposting our interview with Oliver Bullough, author of "Moneyland", on this shady industry and how it operates.

John Heathershaw of the University of Exeter discusses the working paper he co-authored for the National Endowment for Democracy: "Paying for a World Class Affiliation: Reputation Laundering in the University Sector of Open Societies." He shows how vulnerable universities are to abuse by kleptocrats seeking to shape the conversation, often quite subtly, about their governments and their legacies. Episode resources: Paying for a World Class Affiliation: Reputation Laundering in the University Sector of Open Societies, a working paper by Alexander Cooley, Tena Prelec, John Heathershaw and Tom Mayne for the National Endowment for Democracy's International Forum for Democratic Studies, 25 May 2021 For related work, visit the Global Integrity Anti-Corruption Evidence project.

Omar Alshogre, refugee, political activist with the Syrian Emergency Task Force, and first year Georgetown University student, shares the wrenching story of his three years as a political prisoner in the worst of Syria's prisons. He discusses the role that extortion plays there, simultaneously delegitimizing the regime further and propping it up financially. Episode resources: Mentioned at (00:33): The Syrian Emergency Task Force Mentioned at (00:45): Omar's testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 11 March 2020

Josh Rudolph at the Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund discusses how we should approach corruption and kleptocracy from a policy perspective and why Treasury needs to 'get with the program.' Episode resources: Mentioned at (00:41): The Fight Against Corruption Needs Economists, by Josh Rudolph, Foreign Affairs, 17 May 2021 Mentioned at (03:06): Investment Funds: Massive Transparency Loopholes with Josh Kirschenbaum, senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund's Alliance for Securing Democracy, Bribe, Swindle or Steal, 21 April 2021 Mentioned at (04:46): Treasury's War on Corruption: A U.S. Treasury Department Strategy to Fight Kleptocracy and Root Dirty Money Out of the U.S. Financial System, by Josh Rudolph, Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, 22 December 2020 Mentioned at (10:37): Letter from Sen. Whitehouse and Rep. Malinowski to Secretary Janet Yellen, 3 May 2021 Josh's latest report: Coordinating the War on Corruption: An Administrative Plan for the White House to Combat Corruption and Kleptocracy, by Josh Rudolph, Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, 17 May 2021

Hayley Smith with the Los Angeles Times, discusses the story she broke about the sale of phony COVID-19 vaccination cards out of the Old Corner Saloon in California.

Amy McDougal of CLEAResources discusses the rapidly shifting cannabis landscape and how to prepare for the many employment and compliance issues it raises.

Renee Dudley of ProPublica discusses her fascinating research into the unsettling world of ransomware: how it works, the role that "recovery services" play and where the ransom money ends up.

Ike Sorkin, lawyer to both Madoff and Belfort, talks us through their criminal financial schemes and how regulatory safeguards failed.

Oliver Bullough, Tom Burgis and Sarah Chayes, authors of three of the best books on global corruption, gather for a panel at the Annapolis Book Festival for a fascinating discussion about how the corrupt operate, often with impunity, and what can be done to slow the pace of looting.

Josh Kirschenbaum is a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund's Alliance for Securing Democracy and formerly served as acting director of the Office of Special Measures at Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). He joins the podcast to discuss investment funds and the gaping loophole they create through which vast sums of money can move with no accountability.

Diana Henriques drew on her years of financial journalism and extraordinary access to the title character to write the definitive book about Bernie Madoff. It was turned into an HBO movie in early 2017 starring Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer and Diana, playing herself.

Ariel Meyerstein, Senior Vice President, Sustainability & ESG at Citi, shares his insight into human rights, climate change and social justice challenges and the new momentum propelling ESG in the private sector.

Jodi Vittori, with the Democracy, Conflict and Governance Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Research, discusses the UN Security Council's March report on Libya.

In our last podcast before the US election, Mandy Patinkin and Kathryn Grody describe with passion their work with the International Rescue Committee. They tell us what America as a haven means to them and mourn the news that 545 children separated from their parents on the US southern border cannot be restored to their parents. They conclude with a fervent appeal to Americans to turn out to vote in this election.

Jeff Wright, managing partner of Actium Capital, shares a rare private investor perspective on compliance in international deals.

Bill Steinman of Steinman & Rodgers provides a primer on offsets and the compliance challenges they present.

Illya Antonenko, TRACE's Director of Compliance Resources, joins the podcast to talk about his perception of Eastern European corruption through an American lens. Illya grew up in the former Soviet Union and, as an adult, moved to the United States where he began his legal and compliance career.

Hentie Dirker, Chief Integrity Officer with SNC Lavalin, speaks to Jonathan Drimmer of Paul Hastings about building a culture of compliance in the aftermath of a bribery scandal.

Julia Yansura, Program Manager with Global Financial Integrity, joins the podcast to discuss the role that gold plays in illicit financial flows worldwide, exacerbating problems from money laundering to sanctions violations.

For World Pangolin Day on Saturday, we're reposting our podcast about the beleaguered pangolin. Professor Katharine Abernethy discusses the dramatic and illegal overhunting and subsequent smuggling of pangolins, the most trafficked animal in the world, to supply the Asian market with their scales believed—without evidence—to cure cancer.

Etelle Higonnet with the National Wildlife Federation takes us through the complex and intersecting problems raised by the cocoa industry: environmental degradation, child labor and extreme financial disparities that prevent most cocoa farmers from ever tasting the chocolate they grow.

On today's podcast, Tom Burgis discusses his latest book: "Kleptopia: How Dirty Money is Conquering the World." Tom joins me for a webinar hosted by Tom Keating of RUSI, in London.

We're reposting the conversation with Marcus Stern, who broke the story about the bribery scheme that landed Congressman Randall "Duke" Cunningham in jail for seven years. Cunningham also pleaded guilty to fraud and tax evasion.

Michael Johnston joins the podcast to discuss his new book, with co-author Scott Fritzen: The Conundrum of Corruption. Michael is the Charles A. Dana Professor of Political Science Emeritus at Colgate University and has written extensively on the underlying causes of corruption and how best to tackle it. In this podcast, he urges a new approach to the problem.

Nicola Bonucci and Nat Edmonds, in Paul Hastings' Paris and Washington offices respectively, discuss the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention and the Working Group and its recent Phase 4 review of the United States and wrap up with some recommendations for multinational corporations.

Tom Best, a partner in Paul Hastings' Washington office, joins the podcast to review sanctions policy under the Trump Administration and then makes some predictions about what we should expect from President Biden in 2021.

Robert Cribb of the Toronto Star discusses the emails and documents turned over to the media in furtherance of a family feud that spans continents and exposes financial schemes that are both complex and well-documented.

Rupert Younger of Oxford's Center for Corporate Reputation and Alexandra discuss some novel bribery schemes at Berkeley's 2019 "Fraudfest". (The sound quality reflects the conference setting.)

Jennifer Taub, author, legal scholar, professor and advocate, joins the podcast to talk about her latest book: Big Dirty Money: The Shocking Injustice and Unseen Cost of White Collar Crime. Jennifer focuses, in particular, on how much more gently we treat corporate financial crime than we do very petty financial crime, in spite of the fact that the former costs taxpayers far more money.

Robert Clark, Manager of Legal Research at TRACE, discusses the TRACE Matrix, a data driven tool that assesses the likelihood—by country—of a company being asked to pay a bribe. This podcast is technical and may be of particular interest to academics and those in civil society seeking new ways to measure risk.

New York Times reporter Ian Urbina discusses his excellent but grim series about crime and impunity on the high seas.

Sarah Chayes joins the podcast to talk about her latest book: On Corruption in America and What is at Stake. She takes us from the myth of King Midas through to the present in a lively history of corruption and then leaves listeners with a detailed call to action.

Bradley Hope discusses his excellent book about the rise of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and key milestones like the "Ritz Carlton Prison", the kidnapping of Prime Minister Hariri of Lebanon and the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. He also discusses some of MBS's modernization efforts and what the Kingdom might look like if he hadn't risen to a position of power.

James Wright of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) discusses the FinCEN files. He describes the coalition of investigative reporters who dug into the leaked documents and what they found as they reviewed over 2000 Suspicious Activity Reports (SARS) spanning more than five years.

Harvard law professor Matthew Stephenson provides some context for understanding this new EO and then lists the three primary threats it poses for corruption. A more detailed discussion can be found on his Global Anticorruption Blog (GAB).

Today's podcast is an edited version of a recent George Washington University Law School webinar reviewing the Trump Administration's impact on anti-corruption efforts and forecasting the likely impact of either a second Trump or a Biden Administration in January.