Ericsson not expecting any nasty surprises as US corruption investigation nears conclusion

Following reports that the US investigation into historical corrupt practices is set to finally conclude, Ericsson has indicated the fine should be as previously anticipated.

Bloomberg has a couple of those handy anonymous insiders whispering in its collective ear that the investigation into its compliance with the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) could unveil its final conclusion before the end of the year. The report somewhat weakly asserts that the resulting fine could be in excess of a billion bucks.

Considering Ericsson has already publicly accounted for a $1.2 billion fine this is an especially uncontentious claim to make. Nonetheless Ericsson felt the need to issue a press release responding to this press coverage, perhaps concerned that its silence on the matter may be interpreted as it having something to hide.

“In light of recent media coverage about the resolution of the investigations the Company will not comment other than to confirm that the provision of USD 1.2 b.is still its current estimate of the amounts needed to cover the monetary sanctions, plus other related costs, as announced on September 26, 2019,” said the Ericsson statement.

So it seems highly unlikely that Ericsson will get stung for much more than that when the announcement is finally made. The company seems to have been in negotiations with US authorities over the size of the fine for a year or two, so it would be very odd if the process still held any surprises for anyone involved.