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British American Tobacco announced that it has set aside 450 million pounds ($545 million) for the investigation into alleged sanctions violations by two U.S. agencies.
Since at least 2020, when the cigarette manufacturer first disclosed the situation, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) have been looking into the matter. Regarding the potential sanctions that it might have broken and when, British American Tobacco has not provided any additional information.
According to the company's half-year report, which was released on Wednesday, it is "currently engaged in discussions with both agencies to find a resolution through settlement." The amount of any potential settlement with the DOJ and OFAC "cannot be excluded that it may vary from" the sum that British American Tobacco has set aside, the company continued.
Regarding active investigations, neither the DOJ nor OFAC make any statements.
Although the DOJ will get involved in some cases, OFAC is primarily responsible for enforcing sanctions in the United States. For instance, the agencies collaborated with the Bureau of Industry and Security of the U.S. Department of Commerce to reach an agreement with SAP in April 2021 that saw the German software company pay more than $8 million in combined fines after admitting to violating Iran sanctions.
Currently, British American Tobacco has locations in close to 150 different nations.
By fLEXI tEAM