The application was signed off on Monday and is the first deal to be struck since DPAs came into force. The bank had been subject to an indictment alleging failure to prevent bribery under the Bribery Act 2010, but the SFO will end the case under the agreement.

‘Helpful guidance’

SFO director David Green QC has praised it as a template for other agreements, commenting: ‘The judgment from Lord Justice Leveson provides very helpful guidance to those advising corporates. It also endorses the SFO's contention that the DPA in this case was in the interests of justice and its terms fair, reasonable and proportionate.'

Little impact

But some in the profession believe it is unlikely to have a snowball effect. WilmerHale senior associate Alison Geary said: 'The government has recently decided not to extend this Bribery Act offence and reform the law on corporate criminal liability for other corporate offences. This means the number of companies at threat of prosecution, and therefore keen to secure a DPA, is unlikely to increase at any great pace in coming years.' Source: Legal Business