

Bribe, Swindle or Steal
Alexandra Wrage
Alexandra Wrage, president of TRACE, interviews luminaries in the field of financial crime, including bribery, fraud, money-laundering, insider trading and sanctions. Each week, Alexandra and her guests will discuss who commits “white collar crime”, how it works and what is being done to stop it.
Episodes
Mentioned books

May 17, 2023 • 24min
Nicolas Niarchos at the TRACE Forum
Journalist and author Nicolas Niarchos discusses the current state of compliance in battery metal mining, political and regional challenges in the industry, and his forthcoming book on the topic.

34 snips
May 10, 2023 • 27min
Compliance Challenges Surrounding Messaging Apps
Chuck Duross, former head of the DOJ’s FCPA unit and now a partner with Morrison & Forester, walks us through the many compliance challenges associated with employee use of messaging apps, together with a few suggestions on how best to manage the risk.

May 3, 2023 • 26min
“The Art of the Bribe” under Stalin
James Heinzen joins the podcast to talk about his book, The Art of the Bribe: Corruption Under Stalin 1943-1953 and how bribery, extortion and embezzlement in Russia have changed—or not—over the last 70 years.

Apr 26, 2023 • 19min
The Panama Papers: Six Years Later
Kevin G. Hall, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project’s North America editor, reflects on how the Panama Papers have shaped investigative journalism over the past six years and the biggest challenges journalists face today.

Apr 19, 2023 • 29min
Paul Massaro at the TRACE Forum
Paul Massaro of the U.S. Helsinki Commission provides an animated overview of current policy initiatives, U.S. support for Ukraine and what’s next in the fight against global kleptocracy.

Apr 12, 2023 • 27min
“Iceland’s Secret: The Untold Story of the World’s Biggest Con”
Jared Bibler joins the podcast to discuss his lively book about the complete meltdown of Iceland’s banking sector and, as a result, its economy. It was a brazen scheme equal in size to three Enrons and, although it happened in 2008, it remains a timely cautionary tale for the banking sector and regulators today.

9 snips
Apr 5, 2023 • 27min
“Wilful Blindness: How a Network of Narcos, Tycoons, and CCP Agents Infiltrated the West”
Investigative reporter Sam Cooper describes the waves of drugs and laundered money from China crashing on Canada’s shores. Sam's book is “Wilful Blindness: How a Network of Narcos, Tycoons, and CCP Agents Infiltrated the West.” (This episode was originally published in 2021.)

Mar 29, 2023 • 23min
Sam Bankman-Fried: Crypto’s Madoff?
With new foreign bribery charges announced against Sam Bankman-Fried this week, we’re revisiting our discussion with Jim Campbell, author of “Madoff Talks.” Having studied both men, he compares what we know about Bankman-Fried and Madoff.

Mar 22, 2023 • 22min
Wildlife Crime
Olivia Swaak-Goldman, Executive Director of the Wildlife Justice Commission, joins the podcast to discuss the impact of corruption and the role of organized crime in the illicit trade in wildlife.

Mar 15, 2023 • 18min
What Spyware Means for Journalists and Civil Society
Today’s podcast is the second episode in a two-part discussion of the compliance and human rights implications of spyware. After hearing from Chaim Gelfand at NSO Group last week, we asked Khadija Ismayilova, an investigative journalist in Azerbaijan who is alleged to have been monitored for four years by spyware installed on her phone, to speak to the privacy and human rights issues. (The first half of the conversation has some IT issues, but it clears up in the second half, so please stay with us!)