Freepoint Resolves US Charges for Multi-Year Bribery Scheme

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The seal of the U.S. Justice Department is seen on the podium in the Department’s headquarters briefing room before a news conference with the Attorney General in Washington, January 24, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo

In an explosive turn of events, Freepoint Commodities LLC has agreed to pay over $98 million to settle U.S. charges in connection with a multi-year scheme involving the misappropriation of insider information and bribing of Brazilian officials, authorities revealed on Thursday.

The commodities trader, based in Connecticut, has consented to a criminal penalty of $68 million and forfeit an additional $30 million to resolve the Justice Department probe, and cough up another $7.6 million in ill-gotten gains to overcome related charges from the CFTC, the DOJ stated.

According to statements from the CFTC and DOJ, Freepoint embarked on a nefarious plot from 2012-2018 to obtain confidential information and bribe Brazilian government officials to secure business with Brazil’s state-owned oil company, Petróleo Brasileiro S.A.

Interestinly, a spokesperson for the firm did not provide any immediate comment on the case.

This landmark settlement with Freepoint is the latest in a continuous effort by U.S. authorities to weed out corruption and misconduct in the commodities sector. Commodities traders, operating in jurisdictions where corruption is rampant, are often at risk of running afoul of U.S. laws prohibiting bribes to foreign officials.

Just recently, a U.S. judge ordered Glencore (OTC:) PLC to pay a whopping $700 million after pleading guilty to a decade-long bribery scheme, and a Vitol unit previously paid $135 million to resolve a DOJ and Brazil corruption investigation.

As previously reported by Reuters, U.S. and Brazilian authorities were already investigating the firm.

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