In October 2022, Charles Finkel was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the S.D. of New York with Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations in connection with an alleged bribery scheme in Brazil.
Finkel was a former executive at Sicpa (a Swiss technology company which provides governments with banknote security inks and secured identification, traceability and authentication solutions).
The criminal complaint stated:
“This case involves a bribery scheme to pay, among others, a Brazilian official (Official- 1) in exchange for lucrative business and business advantages with the Brazilian government. During portions of the relevant time period, Finkel was an executive vice president of Subsidiary- 1, a subsidiary of Company- 1, and the owner of his own consulting firm, Finkel Company- 1, which received over $292 million in payments from Company- 1 and its subsidiaries and affiliates. During the course of the scheme, Finkel paid bribes of over $14 million to Official- 1 and Official- l ‘ s wife (CC- 1) in order to corruptly obtain and retain contracts worth over $1 billion between Subsidiary- 1 and the Brazilian Mint, referred to as the CMB . The vehicle for paying the bribes to Official- 1 was a purported consulting company (i .e. Consulting Company- 1) set up in the name of Official- l ‘ s wife. Finkel furthered the scheme while present in New York, New York, among other places, and caused wire transfers in furtherance of the scheme to be sent from New York, New York to Brazil.”
In October 2022, Finkel was arrested and appeared before a judge and released on bail. The judge issued an order directing that filings and docket entries be filed under seal and the case has remained under seal for over four years with numerous continuances filed.
On October 15, 2026, the DOJ made a filing in the case indicating that it and defense counsel were in engaged in discussions concerning a possible disposition of the case and that the parties submitted a notice of intent to waive indictment and file a criminal information.
On October 21, 2026 a four page information was filed charging Finkel with one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA’s anti-bribery provisions.
The information alleges in pertinent part:
“On or about December 18, 2008, the Casa da Moeda do Brasil (the “CMB”), a department or agency of the Brazilian government, entered into a five-year contract (the “2008 Contract”) with a Brazilian subsidiary of Company-1 (“Subsidiary-1”), worth approximately $1.4 billion. Pursuant to the 2008 Contract, Subsidiary-1 pledged to implement and service a system to track and tax beverages for the Brazilian government called “SICOBE.” The 2008 Contract was signed by, among others, Finkel on behalf of Subsidiary-1.
In or about 2009, a close relative of an official of the Receita Federal of Brazil (“RFB”) who participated in the selection of Subsidiary-1 for the 2008 Contract (“Official-1”) incorporated a company identified as a consulting company (“Consulting Company-1”) for the benefit of Official-1.
According to the information, Finkel and others “agreed to pay and offer money and other things of value to foreign officials in Brazil, including an official of the Receita Federal of Brazil (“RFB”) (“Official-1”), to obtain and retain business, secure an improper advantage, and direct business to a Swiss company (together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, “Company-1”) and others, including while Finkel worked for an affiliate of Company-1.
The information alleges the following overt acts in furtherance of the conspsiracy.
“On or about June 12, 2009, FINKEL entered into a contract (the “Finkel Contract”) in New York, New York, on behalf of a company (“Finkel Company-1”) with Consulting Company-1, which provided, among other things, that Consulting Company-1 would provide purported consulting services to Finkel Company-1, and designated a specific financial institution headquartered in New York, New York (“Bank-1”) to be used for payments from Finkel Company-1 to Consulting Company-1.
On or about December 4, 2009, Finkel Company-1 received a wire from Company-1 in the approximate amount of $2,373,789.46 with the payment detail “COMMISSION SICOBE+SCORPIOS.” The wire was deposited to a bank account of Finkel Company-1 (“Finkel Company-1 Account”) at Bank-1.
On or about December 7, 2009, Finkel Company-1 sent approximately $125,000 from Finkel Company-1 Account to Consulting Company-1.
On or about June 5, 2015, Finkel Company-1 Account received a wire from Company-1 in the amount of approximately $2,357,253.06.
On or about the same day, June 5, 2015, Finkel Company-1 Account sent approximately $177,000 to Consulting Company-1.
Finkel is represented by Lorin Reisner (Paul Weiss).
This article by Samuel Rubenfeld (MLex) highlights the following.
- Finkel was found guilty by a Rio di Janeiro court and sentenced to more than 11 years in prison. But Finkel appealed and his conviction was overturned in June 2022, according to reports at the time in Brazilian media.
- A Brazilian subsidiary of Sicpa and its spinoff company reached a leniency deal in 2021 with Brazilian authorities, agreeing to pay 762 million reais ($151.1 million) to resolve the investigation.
- The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland ordered Sicpa in 2023 to pay 81 million Swiss francs ($91 million) after failing to prevent bribes being paid to officials in South America.
