b'commodities traders in the world. The DPA details twoThe DPA identifies one Vitol employee involved in the major bribery schemes in three separate countries:scheme by nameJaviar Aguilar (Aguilar)who Brazil, Ecuador, and Mexico.served as an oil and commodities trader during the relevant time period. Specifically, Aguilar and other The Brazil Bribery Scheme Vitol employees worked with Ecuadorian officials The DPA provides that, between 2005 and 2014, Vitolto reach an agreement whereby Vitol would pay a employees paid more than $8 million in bribes to andportion of a per-barrel commission to Ecuadorian for the benefit of Brazilian officials to secure improperofficials in exchange for being awarded a $300 million corporate advantages and win contracts with Brazilscontract with the state-owned oil company of Ecuador state-owned and controlled oil company, Petrleo(Petroecuador). Vitol concealed $1.5 million in fraud-Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras). One aspect of the schemeulent commission paymentsa portion of which involved bribery payments by Vitol to a Brazilian officialwas paid in bi-weekly installments of $150,000by and three Petrobras executives in order to receive (i)creating fake invoices for purported consulting services market intelligence, i.e., internal Petrobras informa- and transferring funds to offshore shell companies. tion intended to give Vitol an advantage in tradingVitol further admitted to making $500,000 in bribery with Petrobras, and (ii) last look information, i.e., thepayments to a Mexican official in order to receive confi-confidential bid information of Vitols competitors. Thedential, inside information to help obtain a contract with $3 million in bribes, were concealed by Vitols creationa subsidiary of PEMEX, the state-owned oil company of of false invoices from a sham company and the transferMexico.of funds through accounts in Switzerland, the United States, the Bahamas, and Grand Cayman. The ResolutionSeparately, while this scheme was ongoing, VitolIn total, Vitol agreed to pay $135 million to resolve its also made bribery payments to five other Petrobrascharges with the DOJ. The DOJ will credit $45 million officials through intermediariesConsultantsinagainst the amount Vitol agreed to pay to resolve exchange for receiving confidential pricing information.charges in Brazil. The Consultants engaged in secret negotiations withVitol also agreed to pay $28.7 million to the Commodity Petrobras officials to establish mutually agreeableFuture Trading Commission for related trading matters, prices for Petrobras contracts, then engaged in shamwhich includes $12.7 million in disgorgement and $16 negotiations to make the illicit negotiations appearmillion for activity not covered by the DPA. legitimate. In the DPA, Vitol admits to making $5 million in bribes and consummating more than 30 transactionsThe DPA further provides that Vitol and Vitol S.A., with Petrobras in this manner between 2011 and 2014. another company within the Vitol Group, will continue to cooperate with the DOJ in any ongoing investigations The Ecuador and Mexico Bribery Scheme and prosecutions relating to the two schemes and to Between 2015 and 2020, Vitol employees paid moregive the DOJ status reports regarding their implementa-than $2 million in bribes to officials in Ecuador andtion of improved compliance programs. Mexico in exchange for information concerning busi-ness opportunities and beneficial treatment in pursuing those opportunities.23'