Ericsson Shares Crash After CEO Says Firm May Have Paid ISIS (bloomberg.com) 41
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Bloomberg: Ericsson may have made payments to the ISIS terror organization to gain access to certain transport routes in Iraq, in a shock admission following years of regulatory investigations. Shares in the Stockholm-based company were down almost 14.5% around lunchtime on Wednesday, its biggest drop in a day since July 2017. In an interview with newspaper Dagens Industri, chief executive officer Borje Ekholm said that Ericsson had identified "unusual expenses dating back to 2018" but the company hasn't yet determined who the final recipient of the money was. "What we are seeing is that transport routes have been purchased through areas that have been controlled by terrorist organizations, including ISIS," Ekholm added. Ekholm's comments follow a statement by the telecommunications equipment manufacturer late on Tuesday, in which the company said that it continues to "invest significantly" into a probe regarding compliance concerns in its Iraq-based operations.
The news of the internal investigation adds another embarrassment for the company following a long running corruption probe, including a $1 billion settlement in 2019. A unit of Ericsson AB pleaded guilty to a years-long campaign of bribery and corruption in Asia and the Middle East. In October last year, the matter resurfaced, after the U.S. Department of Justice accused the company of breaching the agreement by failing to provide certain documents to the D.O.J. The new suspect payments likely formed part of the same corruption probe, according to analysts at Handelsbanken. The analysts don't expect the revelations to trigger further investigations. Ekholm told the newspaper that Ericsson has spent "considerable resources trying to understand this as best we can. Financing terrorism is completely unacceptable and something we do not allow at all."
The news of the internal investigation adds another embarrassment for the company following a long running corruption probe, including a $1 billion settlement in 2019. A unit of Ericsson AB pleaded guilty to a years-long campaign of bribery and corruption in Asia and the Middle East. In October last year, the matter resurfaced, after the U.S. Department of Justice accused the company of breaching the agreement by failing to provide certain documents to the D.O.J. The new suspect payments likely formed part of the same corruption probe, according to analysts at Handelsbanken. The analysts don't expect the revelations to trigger further investigations. Ekholm told the newspaper that Ericsson has spent "considerable resources trying to understand this as best we can. Financing terrorism is completely unacceptable and something we do not allow at all."
Well of course they are in trouble (Score:4, Funny)
Ericsson may have made payments to the ISIS terror organization
Yeah, they are in trouble for sure - the CIA hates competition.
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Re:Well of course they are in trouble (Score:5, Interesting)
That is why paying bribes was decriminalized in India. Only receiving a bribe is illegal.
If both sides of the transaction are crimes, there is a collusion of silence and the recipient can even demand new bribes with a threat to expose old bribes. But when only receiving is illegal, the risk is borne solely by the receiving official if the payer reports it.
Bribes in India can be reported at ipaidabribe.com [ipaidabribe.com].
Same with the US... (Score:2, Informative)
The Citizens United verdict, and Ted Cruz's case pretty much make bribery a 100% protected First Amendment speech item, as bribery is "speech with dollars".
So, the US is the only country in the world where bribery is legal, giving, or receiving.
Re: Well of course they are in trouble (Score:5, Interesting)
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ISIS funding more likely comes from the Saudi govt... with the CIA's blessing, of course. The Saudi govt has been proselytising its Wahabsim in the region for decades & ISIS is just the latest iteration of Wahabism's radical, extreme, violent beliefs. The Saudi govt don't actually believe or follow Wahabism, it's just another political tool to them: They can imply that a country 'might have difficulties with terrorism' during negotiations if they don't get what they want. Washington plays along because it's 'useful' for them, even going as far as to protect those responsible for terror attacks in the USA. Think that one over for a while.
Can you provide some sources or evidence? Or do wild conspiracy theories with no proof just get modded up as Interesting as a matter of course these days on Slashdot?
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These days? Perhaps you missed the coverage the "Steele Dossier" got here on
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Can you provide some sources or evidence?
What I can do is easily observe that your admission of being uninformed simply doesn't equate to a lack of credibility on the part of the parent, your attempt to re-direct notwithstanding.
It's an open secret which entities control ISIS, which is to say not a fucking secret at all.
Re: Well of course they are in trouble (Score:2)
Well that's not great (Score:2)
"may have"? (Score:2)
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Arrested Development building houses in Iraq (Score:2)
Those episodes really held up.
Twenty years ago Ericcson executives would have been at risk for some "light torture" after an extraordinary rendition.
https://arresteddevelopment.fa... [fandom.com]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
How'd y'all think it works? (Score:2, Interesting)
Every time you see a dispatch from some far-off (or nearby) hell hole ruled over by warlords and barbarians, and the man in the street in the background is flashing a newish version of the same gadget you've got in your pocket or is driving a car not too dissimilar to yours, how do you think that happened?
Of course someone unsavory, by our standards, got payed off out of money that originally came from the pockets of people you're likely to interact with here.
ISIS famously drove Toyotas trucks. Some of thos
Re:How'd y'all think it works? (Score:4, Interesting)
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These car are loaded on ships and sold in bulk, without plates, in third world countries and then could be resold againg without any control from the original owner or dealer.
Re:How'd y'all think it works? (Score:4, Insightful)
People don't realize this but a lot of vehicles sold used in the West end up in other places. You see them a lot in China, loads of Toyotas, Nissans, Chevys, General Motors, BMWs, Audis, Mercedes... Many of them are ex lease, returned after a few years, cleaned up a bit and sold in China or another developing nation.
The car manufacturers love it. They get to sell the same car twice, and get to enter developing markets without compromising their prices elsewhere.
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It's absolutely piss-easy to get vehicle to some war-torn shithole.
1) Buy a vehicle with cash somewhere.
2) Put vehicle in container. [Customs tends not to give a shit what is leaving]
3) Container goes on ship or truck so some place which isn't quite a war-torn shithole [yet] but is next to said war-torn shithole.
4) Some money changes hands at the ports/border to ensure container gets off and unloaded somewhere.
5) Truck drives across border to war-torn shithole again with money changing hands.
Also NOTHING ge
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Also NOTHING gets done in the Middle East [with the exception perhaps of Israel] without someone having their hand out.
It's so embedded in the culture there that we even have a word in the English language from the middle east for it, baksheesh.
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Others (Score:4, Interesting)
Anyone want to bet against me that other companies have been doing the same? I need some easy money. This situation sucks, but what sucks more is that Chinese companies would move in there too. Trump, the dumbest, most terrorist appeasing and easily fooled president with the sense of judgement in history, declared ISIS finished even though they still existed and were thriving. Trump had the chance to wipe out ISIS but botched it and instead got himself outplayed by China and many of his own advisors who he selected. No doubt terrorists, Russia, and China wants him back in office for round two of dunk the clown.
Re:Others (Score:4, Funny)
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Pepperidge Farm remembers. https://www.newsweek.com/gop-r... [newsweek.com]
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China does what a lot of people here want Western banks and payment processors to do - provides services to everyone without judgement. If you want Visa and Mastercard to take payments for everyone, no bans on far right groups or porn, that's what it looks like.
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China does, but for some it's only after the authorities have locked them up and re-educated them for at least a few months. Then they can use the banks.
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False. China does not provide services to everyone without judgment.
If you say the wrong thing, China will cut you off. Words like "Democracy" or "Freedom" or "human rights" for example. Since ISIS is for none of that Western government stuff, well,
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Well, that's true. It's not so much if you say democracy, it's fine if your country is one (and remember that the CCP laughably claims to be one too, and a better one at that!). It's Taiwan and Tibet that really annoy them.
I should have said that as long as you don't get involved in China's geopolitical BS, they don't really care.
I guess terror isn't as bad as the metaverse (Score:5, Funny)
Admit to funding terrorism: 15% stock hit
Admit that the Metaverse is a stupid idea: 25% stock hit
Re:I guess terror isn't as bad as the metaverse (Score:4, Funny)
Admit that the Metaverse is a stupid idea: 25% stock hit
But an instant +5 mod points on slashdot
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Coincidence (Score:5, Interesting)
In totally unrelated news, the Ericsson boss of that area sold a bunch of Ericsson stock a few weeks before they went public with the bribery info.
https://www.di.se/live/ericsso... [www.di.se]
Why does EN have so many homonyms? (Score:2)
This is how things SHOULD work (Score:2)
When a company like Ericsson does something really stupid, they should suffer the consequences of the free market dumping their stock. This is not the same thing as cancel culture or totalitarian rule. Learn the difference.