SEC Fines Oracle $23 Million, Says Company Bribed Foreign Officials

Topline

Oracle will pay about $23 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly providing impermissible benefits to government officials in several countries, regulators announced Tuesday, marking the second such multimillion-dollar fine for the American software giant.

Facade with Oracle’s logo at its regional headquarters in San Jose, California.

Getty Images

Key Facts

Oracle’s subsidiaries in India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates used slush funds to pay off officials and sponsor officials and their families’ trips to technology conferences and to California between 2016 and 2019, according to the SEC.

The company will pay a $15 million penalty and return about $8 million in wrongful profits.

Oracle did not admit to or deny the allegations as part of the settlement, and Michael Egbert, Oracle’s vice president of corporate communications, wrote in an emailed statement to Forbes: “The conduct outlined by the SEC is contrary to our core values and clear policies, and if we identify such behavior, we will take appropriate action.”

Oracle shares fell about 1% Tuesday morning from its opening ticker, compared to a 1.1% rise in the S&P 500.

Key Background

The SEC fined Oracle $2 million in 2012 for setting aside about $2.2 million to unauthorized side funds in its Indian subsidiary. Charles Cain, the head of the SEC’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement unit, noted in a statement Tuesday Oracle’s violations highlight “the critical need for effective internal accounting controls throughout the entirety of a company’s operations.”

Tangent

Oracle’s CEO Safra Catz and cofounder and chairman Larry Ellison each netted more than $138 million in total compensation last fiscal year, the company disclosed Friday. Both Catz ($1.3 billion) and Ellison ($90.2 billion) are billionaires, according to Forbes’ estimates. Ellison is the seventh-wealthiest person in the world.

Topline

Key Facts

Key Background

Tangent

Further Reading