Compass, the world’s largest catering group, announced this week that will pay up to £40 million to settle two lawsuits alleging that it used bribes to win United Nations (UN) foodservice contracts.
Es-Ko International and Supreme Foodservice brought the lawsuits against Compass in March - and had filed for £600m worth of damages.
They alleged that the Compass had led an illegal conspiracy to win UN contracts worth more than $350m (£188m) to provide food rations to peacekeeping forces around the world.
Compass became a UN-registered vendor in 2000 and won contracts to supply peace-keepers operating in Sudan, East Timor, Liberia, Burundi, Eritrea, Lebanon, Cyprus and Syria.
But the scandal broke after the UN launched an investigation into allegations of corrupt buying practices in its procurement department, which led to the arrest of senior officer Alexander Yakovlev, after he admitted taking £1m in bribes from companies doing business with the UN.
This prompted Compass to mount its own investigation that resulted in the dismissal of a number of its staff, including the head of its UK division, over “serious concerns” about their conduct.
But Compass said the out-of-court settlement was not an admission of legal liability.
Richard Cousins, Compass chief executive, said: “We believe it is in the best interests of the business and shareholders, and good management, to avoid uncertainties and costs associated with prolonged litigation. My focus is on the future and this settlement is a major step in putting the matter behind us.”
