The report indicates that there have been significant improvements in Chile since 2020, with a considerable jump in the number of Chileans who are aware of the trials, from 38% in 2020 to 74% in 2024.
As the group az | albagli zaliasnik we participated in the survey on “Corruption in Latin America 2024” carried out by the North American firm Miller & Chevalier Chartered, together with prominent firms in the region.
In order to jointly study this matter, more than 1,000 professionals throughout Latin America were consulted, representatives of numerous industries and business sectors, including publicly traded multinational corporations to local and regional companies. Lawyers, risk directors, compliance officers and a variety of other senior executives were also included.
The studies participated in the document: Alta QIL+4 (Guatemala), Beccar Varela (Argentina), BLP Legal (Costa Rica and El Salvador), Brigard & Urrutia (Colombia), Bustamante Fabara (Ecuador), CPB (Peru), Demarest Advogados (Brazil), Ferrere (Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay), García & Bodan (Honduras and Nicaragua), Headrick Rizik Álvarez & Fernández (Dominican Republic), Leĝa Abogados (Venezuela), LOVILL (Panama) and Von Wobeser y Sierra (Mexico ).
Overall, the survey reveals that corruption in the region remains widespread and that corporate compliance, beyond law enforcement, has been the key factor in addressing it. However, Chile is the country in the region – along with Uruguay – that has made the most progress in terms of anti-corruption.
Rodrigo Albagli, Managing Partner of az explains that “although the view on corruption is high in our region, the survey shows a drop of almost 20 points in companies that estimate that they have lost business due to corruption, going from 60% in 2008 to 41% this year. Likewise, more and more companies are adopting compliance strategies and 80% maintain that they are taking measures to mitigate corruption risks. However, 46% of executives in the region still affirm that corruption is a major obstacle to doing business.”
The figures reveal significant improvements in Chile since 2020. There has been a considerable jump in the number of Chileans who are aware of the trials, from 38% in 2020 to 74% in 2024. The country also saw the most dramatic increase in respondents who They think it is likely that a violator of the law will be prosecuted, from 43% in 2020 to 79% in 2024.
Chileans have the perception that anti-corruption laws in our country have been strengthened, and the majority perceive that anti-corruption regulation is effective to a moderate or significant degree (73% in 2024 versus 57% in 2020). Along with Uruguay, Chile is the country that has the most confidence in its anti-corruption laws.
These changes could be explained in part by the strengthening of the Chilean corporate criminal liability regime in recent years, especially after the enactment of the Economic Crimes Law, which comes into force in September of this year. Chilean companies know that they must move quickly towards an effective compliance model that responds to the demands of this new regulation. Thus, according to our study, 88% of those surveyed stated that they are currently giving priority and increasing resources for their compliance programs, with Chile being one of the countries that is making the most progress in this regard in the region,” concludes Rodrigo Albagli.
We invite you to download the document here.
For more information on these topics you can contact our Compliance group:
Rodrigo Albagli | Partner | ralbagli@az.cl
Caterina Ravera | Senior Associate, Compliance Group | cravera@az.cl
Florence Fuentealba | Associate, Compliance Group | ffuentealba@az.cl
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