The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has secured a £10 million payment from a British manufacturer of electronic systems for the international defence and aerospace market after it acknowledged accountability for failure to prevent bribery. A judge today approved a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) requiring Ultra Electronics Holdings Ltd to pay the penalty, plus £4.8 million in SFO investigation costs.
In addition to the financial penalty and costs, the DPA requires the company to meet strict conditions and demonstrate genuine and sustained reform under the scrutiny of the court.
Director of the Serious Fraud Office, Graham McNulty QPM, said
Public services and critical national infrastructure depend on business being carried out honestly and lawfully. Bribery undermines that trust and corrodes the systems on which society relies. Today’s outcome underlines the Serious Fraud Office’s determination to investigate and hold companies to account where those standards are breached.
An investigation was opened into the company in 2018 after it reported suspected offences of corruption relating to conduct in Algeria. In 2024, this investigation was extended to all jurisdictions in which the company operated.
The DPA relates to failure to prevent bribery in connection with three public sector contracts sought through the use of agents. These included a contract worth up to £200 million awarded by the Omani Ministry of Transport and Communications.
There were two further contracts sought in Algeria. One for information technology and e-commerce solutions at Houari Boumediene Airport in Algiers, and a second for encryption technology for the Algerian Ministry of Post and Telecommunications. The Algerian contracts – ultimately not secured by the company – were expected to generate a profit of £1.4 million.
Ultra Electronics must pay the penalty and SFO investigation costs within 30 days. The company must also provide yearly reports for the next three years to the SFO to demonstrate the effectiveness of its anti-bribery and compliance programme.
Notes to editors
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Under the Bribery Act 2010, a company can be held criminally liable if someone acting on its behalf pays a bribe to win or retain business – unless the company can demonstrate it had adequate procedures in place to prevent bribery from occurring.
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A DPA is a voluntary agreement between a prosecutor and an organisation, approved by a judge, under which prosecution is deferred in exchange for the organisation meeting certain conditions, including financial penalties and cooperation with investigators.
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The SFO previously withdrew from negotiations with Ultra Electronics when it concluded the conditions for a meaningful agreement were not in place. It was only following significant changes to the company’s ownership, structure and leadership that negotiations resumed. The SFO satisfied itself that Ultra Electronics’ new leadership had both the willingness and the capacity to engage in good faith before talks resumed.
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Ultra Electronics was part of the FTSE 250 Index until 1 August 2022 when it was taken private by Advent. It now operates under new leadership.
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This concludes the SFO’s criminal investigation into Ultra Electronics.