RiskWatch

Evan Abrams, an Associate at Steptoe LLP, came back on the show to discuss a new Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to regulate connected vehicles linked to China and Russia. Evan advises clients on issues related to anti-money laundering and anti-corruption, and recently co-authored this blog post on the Steptoe website detailing the proposed regulation. Here is a link to Evan's bio if you’d like...

Dan Harris is a founding member of Harris Sliwoski, an international law firm where he represents companies doing business in emerging market countries. Dan writes and speaks extensively on international law, with a focus on protecting foreign businesses in their overseas operations. He recently authored a blog post on his firm’s website using the recent Hezbollah exploding pager attack as a case...

Timothy O’Toole discusses the Treasury Department’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding an Executive Order focused on regulating certain outbound US investments that could pose a national security threat. This would be known as the Outbound Investment Security Program. Tim is a Member at the law firm Miller & Chevalier and is the Practice Lead of Economic Sanctions and Export Controls. Tim...

Andrew Balthazor discusses the SEC’s growing focus on the problem of ‘AI washing’ and the threat it poses to investors. Andrew is an attorney in Holland & Knight's Miami office practicing in the firm's Litigation and Dispute Resolution Section. His practice focuses on solving problems born of digital-era innovations and other high-stakes complex commercial litigation. Here is a link...

Tiffany Campion discusses some recent trends in the takeover defense and shareholder activism space. Tiffany is a senior attorney in the Chicago office of Latham & Watkins, where she focuses on takeover defense and shareholder activism. Here is a link to her bio and contact information.

Amy Caizza, a Partner at Wilson Sonsini, discusses new proposed rules by FinCEN that would see a significant expansion of AML / CFT obligations for Registered Investment Advisers, Venture Capital Advisers, and Private Fund Advisers. This could mean a significant addition to advisers’ obligations when screening potential investors. Here is a link to the recent alert that the firm published on the p...

Daniel Wendt, a member at Miller & Chevalier, discusses the new Foreign Extortion Prevention Act that was signed into law by President Biden in December 2023.  FEPA was designed to prevent extortion by foreign officials and criminalizes the act of foreign officials demanding bribes addressing a potential gap in the FCPA. Here is a link to a recent alert that Miller & Chevalier published on...

Evan Abrams is an Associate at Steptoe & Johnson and advises clients on issues related to anti-money laundering and anti-corruption, among others. He came on the show to discuss FinCEN’s recent proposed rule targeting digital asset mixers. The proposed rule is part of an effort by the Department of Treasury to crackdown on cryptocurrency anonymity services such as digital asset mixers which ca...

David Rybicki and Neil Smith of the law firm K&L Gates discuss the new Department of Justice Safe Harbor Policy for voluntary self-disclosure made in connection with M&A. The discussion covers several different focus points, including concerns that need to be top of mind for acquirers, key industries to watch, and the growing importance of deeper due diligence, both pre and post deal. You...

Ann Sultan and Alexandra Beaulieu of the law firm Miller & Chevalier came on the show to discuss recent enforcement developments and trends concerning the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Ann is a Partner and Vice Chair of the International Department at the firm and provides public companies and private organizations with advice on a wide range of enforcement, ethics and compliance topics. Alex...

Mike Blankenship came back on the show to discuss the IPO underwriting process, the role of due diligence and the state of the IPO market. Mike is a Managing Partner at the Houston office of Winston & Strawn and focuses his practice on corporate finance and securities law, including securities offerings, public company advisory, special purpose company offerings, among others.  You can find a...

Carrie LeRoy and Charles Walker of the lawfirm Gibson Dunn discuss key takeaways from a bulletin they published on the Gibson Dunn website titled M&A Report: Top Technology Sector-Specific Legal Diligence Concerns in Acquisitions. They discussed the pitfalls that exist for technology acquisitions from intellectual property ownership to cyber security to bribery and corruption risks from third...

Laura Black and Christian Davis of the lawfirm Akin Gump discuss the likelihood and implications of an outbound investment regulation regime to protect US national security interests that would screen and monitor outbound investment from the United States to “countries of concern”.  You can check out recent thought leadership published by the firm here as well as information on how to get in touch...

Kenneth Nunnenkamp is a partner with Morgan Lewis and represents clients in international trade and national security matters. He came on the show to speak about what the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is and its implications for companies and financial institutions going forward.  You can read recent material published by Morgan Lewis on the CTA here .

Clare Connellan, Partner in White & Case’s London office and Head of the firm's Business & Human Rights Interest Group, joins the RiskWatch podcast to share strategies for ensuring compliance with Modern Slavery and Supply Chain regulations, including the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and the German Supply Chain Act. This conversation covers: 00:00 - 00:49 Introduction 00:50 - 02...

Founder of Kaya Advisors and former Tilray EU Alliance Manager, Steven Arthur George, joins the RiskWatch podcast to discuss risk and opportunity in the corporate cannabis space, including recreational legalization in Germany and the evolution of third party relationships. This conversation covers: 00:31 - 00:51 Introduction  00:52 - 05:50 Steve’s trans-Atlantic cannabis journey 05:51 - 11:30 Comp...

Randy Bullard, partner in Morrison Foerster’s Corporate Department and Latin America Desk co-chair, joins the RiskWatch podcast to discuss ESG (environmental, social, and governance) investing in Latin America. This conversation covers: 00:46 - 01:49 Randy’s work at Morrison Foerster 01:50 - 02:46 Green energy observations 02:47 - 05:16 Overlooked markets and points of entry for investors 05:17 -...

Nancy Jacobson, Counsel, Global Compliance and Ethics at United Airlines, joins Vcheck Global’s Seth Harlan to talk third party risk management (TPRM) and the airline industry. Episode highlights include Nancy’s non-traditional career path, how United recognizes and remediates risk, and compliance challenges facing the airline industry. This conversation covers: 0:45 - 02:47 Nancy’s non-traditiona...

Tom Stocks, senior investigator with the Organized Crime and Reporting Project joins RiskWatch to discuss the challenges of tracking oligarch assets including industries and locales warranting scrutiny and the ways oligarchs hide their assets. Learn more at https://vcheckglobal.com/news .

Mike Blankenship, managing partner of Winston & Strawn's Houston office, returns to Vcheck Global's podcast RiskWatch to discuss De-SPAC due diligence priorities, M&A sectors and regions to watch, and risks facing biotech and digital health investors. Learn more at https://vcheckglobal.com/news.

Hot on the heels of Transparency International’s recently released 2021 Corruption Perceptions Index, Vcheck Global’s Seth Harlan speaks with James Cohen, Executive Director of Transparency International Canada and Shanti Salas, VP, North America, for OpenCorporates for the latest episode of the RiskWatch podcast. Learn more at https://vcheckglobal.com/news.

Richard Sutherland, Vice President of Human Intelligence at Vcheck Global, joins colleagues Alex Sorin, Vice President of Global Diligence Markets, and Seth Harlan, host of RiskWatch, to help demystify source inquiries and discuss what trends Vcheck saw in 2021 and what 2022 is expected to bring in regards to emerging risk issues and source inquiries jurisdictions. Learn more at https://vcheckglob...

With the Securities Regulation Institute’s 49th Annual Conference underway, Vcheck Global’s Seth Harlan speaks with Elaine Greenberg, Shareholder at Greenberg Traurig LLP and former senior officer in the the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Enforcement Division.  Highlights from this RiskWatch podcast episode include anticipated changes in the types of sanctions and relief...

With the Securities Regulation Institute’s 49th Annual Conference underway, Vcheck Global’s Seth Harlan speaks with Mellissa Duru, Special Counsel at Covington & Burling LLP and former Sr. Special Counsel at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).  Highlights from this RiskWatch podcast episode include Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) benchmarking stand...

To kick off CRE Finance Council’s January Conference 2022, Vcheck Global’s Seth Harlan speaks with Jack Cohen, President and Chief Innovation Officer of Stronghill Capital, a subsidiary of ArrowMark Partners, and past Chairman of the Commercial Real Estate Finance Council for our latest episode of RiskWatch.  Highlights from this RiskWatch podcast episode include property types to watch this year...