Formed in 1888, Alcoa Inc. is the world's eighth largest producer of aluminum. It is a Pennsylvania corporation with its principal office in New York and its stock is traded on the NYSE.
According to company filings, on February 26, 2008, Alcoa Inc. (Alcoa) advised the DOJ and the SEC that it had recently become aware of claims made by Aluminum Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba) alleging that Alcoa and its employees, among other things, illegally bribed officials of the government of Bahrain to pressure Alba to pay higher prices and enter into certain agreements with Alcoa. With an internal investigation underway, Alcoa informed the DOJ and SEC that they intended to cooperate fully in any investigation that may commence. On March 17, 2008, the DOJ notified Alcoa of the commencement of a formal investigation. The SEC subsequently commenced a concurrent investigation.
On January 9, 2014, Alcoa resolved the investigations by the DOJ and the SEC. The settlement with the DOJ was reached with Alcoa World Alumina LLC (AWA), a subsidiary of Alcoa. Under the terms of a plea agreement entered into with the DOJ, AWA pled guilty to one count of violating the anti-bribery provisions of the FCPA. As part of the DOJ resolution, AWA agreed to pay a total of $223 million, including a fine of $209 million payable in five equal installments over four years.
Also effective January 9, 2014, Alcoa also settled civil charges filed by the SEC in an administrative proceeding relating to the anti-bribery, internal controls, and books and records provisions of the FCPA. Under the terms of the settlement with the SEC, Alcoa agreed to a settlement amount of $175 million, less a $14 million one-time forfeiture payment, which is an administrative fee as part of the DOJ resolution from above, resulting in a total cash payment to the SEC of $161 million payable in five equal installments over four years.
According to Alcoa, there was no allegation in the filings by the DOJ and there was no finding by the SEC that anyone at Alcoa Inc. knowingly engaged in the conduct at issue.
