FOREIGN CORRUPT PRACTICES ACT

In 1977, Congress amended the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act") and enacted the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ("FCPA" or "the Act"). The FCPA's passage followed an extensive Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") investigation and voluntary disclosure program in the 1970s, which revealed that US companies had paid hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to secure business from foreign officials. Corporate bribery both hindered the markets from operating efficiently and eroded public confidence in US companies' financial integrity. Seeking to restore public confidence in the business community, Congress passed the FCPA, which regulates international corruption through two sets of provisions: the accounting provisions and the anti-bribery provisions.