Monday, April 17, 2017 - Brazil's Odebrecht fined US$2.6bn for corruption

Novonor SA (formerly Odebrecht SA)
Source - http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-39624421
Where - United States of America
Cost - 2,600,000,000 USD
Business line - Engineering and Construction
Copyright © BBC News (www.bbc.com) 2017

Brazilian engineering firm Odebrecht has been fined US$2.6bn for corruption involving scandal-ridden state oil company, Petrobras.

The fine is part of a plea deal agreed between US, Brazilian and Swiss authorities last year.

Odebrecht has been charged with committing bribery offences in 12 Latin American countries. Some of the illicit payments are understood to have been processed by US banks.

US$2.39bn of the fine will be given to Brazil and the rest will be divided between the Swiss and US authorities.

Odebrecht, and affiliated oil company Braskem SA, pleaded guilty in December to the charges. The company is now attempting to negotiate plea deals with other governments in order to allow it to benefit from future infrastructure contracts.

The charges against Odebrecht relate to a three-year investigation into Petrobras which has led to many business leaders being arrested, with CEO Marcelo Odebrecht currently serving a 19-year jail sentence.