Brazilian Car Wash scandal draws in Glencore and Trafigura
- Editor
- Dec 5, 2018
- 1 min read
Summary: Brazilian authorities expanded the massive Operation Car Wash corruption probe to include commodity trading giants Glencore, Vitol, and Trafigura. Federal prosecutors allege the companies paid over $15 million in bribes to Petrobras officials between 2011 and 2014 to secure favorable fuel trading deals. Officials manipulated prices and pocketed the “delta,” the difference from market rates. The investigation revealed over 160 suspicious transactions and described the corruption as a long-running, systemic scheme. Authorities issued dozens of search and arrest warrants and urged international counterparts to investigate the implicated firms. While Vitol responded by affirming its anti-bribery policy, Glencore and Trafigura declined to comment. Campaigners such as Global Witness called for urgent enforcement actions in the UK, US, and Switzerland, where the firms have major offices.
Source: The Guardian
