Former Goldman Sachs Investment Banker Convicted of Foreign Bribery and Money Laundering

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Asante Kwako Berko, 52, conspired to pay more than $1 million in bribes to multiple Ghanaian government officials in connection with the development and financing of a power plant estimated to generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.

Beginning in December 2014, Berko, a former Executive Director in the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs, was responsible for securing and managing a deal between Aksa Enerji, a Turkish energy company and client of Goldman Sachs, and the Republic of Ghana, for the construction and financing of a power plant in Ghana amidst a national energy crisis in the country.

During the scheme, Berko and his co-conspirators paid and conspired to pay bribes to individuals at numerous levels of the Ghanaian government to ensure that the Turkish Energy company won its bid to build and operate the power plant. In April 2015, Berko and the conspirators discussed paying $1 million to the Minister of Power who was responsible for securing key approvals enabling the project to progress.

by DOJ Press Releases

Senate won't vote on crypto Clarity Act before its summer break

The U.S. Senate will not vote on the crypto market structure bill before it breaks for the rest of the month, but industry leaders still hope for a vote in September, when the Senate returns to Washington, D.C., multiple individuals following the legislation told CoinDesk.

The crypto industry hoped that the Senate would stay in session for a few more days to resolve outstanding issues, including the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, but Senators from both parties had major unresolved issues on the legislation. The Senate will return to D.C. on Sept. 14, 2026, and will have three weeks to work on this and other outstanding issues then.

by CoinDesk

The Supreme Court Quietly Killed SEC Independence

When the Supreme Court voted narrowly to preserve the independence of the Federal Reserve at the end of June, many investors breathed a sigh of relief. It may have been premature. Because on the same day, in another decision, the court killed the independence of every federal agency — including the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The consequences of that decision for capital markets are not as immediate, but they are equally profound and have been curiously overlooked. From now on, whoever is president can fire any SEC commissioner at any time, for any reason or none at all. He can reduce the commission to a single member, the chair. The SEC’s traditionally independent enforcement power is now effectively under presidential control.

by Bloomberg

'Police the Market'? New SEC Enforcement Unit Targets Accounting 'Bad Actors'

The unit will be staffed by attorneys and accountants with financial reporting, accounting and auditing expertise in securities regulation, the SEC said.

Miller & Chevalier chair Will Barry said the move could signal a return to active accounting fraud enforcement, which has slowed under the Trump administration. [...]

The agency’s newly created Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit is “a reflection of the administration's realization that they need to police the market,” Barry said.

Still, it remains to be seen whether the new enforcement unit will be appropriately staffed, he said.

Added Barry: “Is it just a press release or is it an initiative?”

by Corporate Counsel