Hitachi enters into US$19 million foreign bribery settlement

Japanese conglomerate Hitachi has agreed to pay US$19 million to resolve FCPA charges brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The neither-admit-nor-deny settlement, which was announced on 28 September, resolves allegations that Hitachi bribed South Africa’s ruling political party, the African National Congress, with US$6 million in dividends and fees to win contracts to build power plants.