US President Donald Trump has halted the enforcement of an anti-corruption law that allows the prosecution of Americans accused of bribing foreign officials

U.S. President Donald Trump has halted enforcement of a decades-old anti-corruption law that allows for the prosecution of Americans accused of bribing foreign officials.

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), in place for nearly 50 years, bars U.S. companies from offering bribes to foreign government officials to secure or retain business deals.

“This will mean a lot more business for America,” Trump said Monday while signing the executive order.

In a statement, the White House argued that “over-expansive” and “unpredictable” enforcement of the law hindered the “economic advancement of the U.S.”

Trump has long criticized the FCPA, previously calling it a “horrible law” and claiming that “the world is laughing at us” for enforcing it. He also instructed the Department of Justice to review past enforcement actions and develop new guidelines for handling FCPA cases.

Watchdog Groups Sound the Alarm

Anti-corruption advocates voiced serious concerns. Transparency International said Trump’s order “diminishes—and could ultimately eliminate—the crown jewel of America’s fight against global corruption.”

In response, Trump dismissed the criticism, saying the law restricts “routine business practices in other nations” and diverts resources away from “preserving American freedoms.”

The White House echoed this sentiment, stating that U.S. firms were at a disadvantage due to FCPA enforcement, while international competitors freely engaged in similar practices. “The president is removing excessive barriers to American commerce abroad,” the statement read.

High-Profile FCPA Cases

Several major corporations have been targets of FCPA enforcement in recent years.

• In 2020, Goldman Sachs agreed to pay nearly $3 billion to settle charges related to the 1MDB corruption scandal. The bank’s Malaysian subsidiary admitted in court that it had paid over $1 billion in bribes to win contracts for raising funds for Malaysia’s state-owned wealth fund.
• In 2022, Swiss-based mining giant Glencore paid $180 million to the Democratic Republic of Congo to settle corruption claims after a series of U.S.-led investigations.

By the end of 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission had initiated 26 enforcement actions under the FCPA, with at least 31 companies under investigation.

High-Profile Legal Shifts

The same day Trump signed the executive order, the Justice Department instructed federal prosecutors to drop their corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Adams, who pleaded not guilty to charges of accepting illegal campaign funds and gifts in exchange for political influence, had seen his ability to address “illegal immigration and violent crime” restricted by the indictment, according to a White House statement.

Trump also issued a pardon to former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, a Democrat who served eight years in prison on corruption charges before Trump commuted his sentence during his first term.