April 20 2016
Global commitments to combating corruption and enhanced cooperation by international law enforcement agencies have increased the pressure on companies to mitigate fraud, bribery and corruption risks. There is also a growing consensus that prosecuting individual executives, and increasing government efforts to apply international standards on the transparency of company ownership will help tackle these issues.
The report explores these issues in detail and provides insight as to how businesses can take steps to minimize the risk of corruption in their operations. It also provides specific regional insights in Africa, Brazil, China, Eastern Europe and India following interviews conducted by EY Partners with executives from leading companies about the survey’s findings.
Key findings
Combatting corruption as a global priority
91% of respondents believe it is important to know the ultimate beneficial ownership of the entities with which they do business
83% of respondents view enforcement against management as an effective deterrent against fraud, bribery and corruption
Justifying unethical behaviour and misconduct
51% of respondents in emerging markets consider bribery and corruption to happen widely in their country
1 in 10 of respondents would make a cash payment to win or retain business in an economic downturn rising to 1 in 4 in the Far East
42% of respondents could justify unethical behaviour to ensure they met financial targets
Almost half of all finance team members interviewed stated that they would be prepared to engage in at least one form of unethical behaviour to meet financial targets or safeguard a company’s economic survival.
Bolstering defenses
While 55% of companies have a whistle blower hotline in place – 19% of respondents cited loyalty to their company and 18% cited loyalty to their colleagues as deterrents to reporting incidents of fraud, bribery and corruption
Only 50% of respondents globally are using specialist monitoring software to identify fraud risks
1 in 5 respondents are not identifying third parties as part of their anti-corruption due diligence