Gossip roundup

• Deloitte-made Medicaid approval system illegally denied thousands of people benefits

• BCG says their internal AI platforms make employees more joyful

• Wharton MBA says they are ‘suffering in silence’ — tone deaf?

• MBB intern return offers seem to have normalized

• Deloitte consultant earns gold at Olympics

Top story: BCG admits to paying bribes to get government contracts in Angola

BCG adds another instance of consulting firms doing shady things with governments.

BCG recently admitted to paying millions in bribes to secure contracts in Angola, resulting in the firm agreeing to forfeit over $14 million in profits from deals with the country's economy ministry and central bank. A U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) investigation revealed that BCG routed bribes through offshore accounts linked to Angolan officials and members of the ruling political party. These payments, facilitated by BCG’s Lisbon office between 2011 and 2017, violated the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. However, BCG avoided prosecution by self-reporting, dismissing the involved individuals, and fully cooperating with the inquiry.

The investigation found that BCG paid an agent connected to Angolan officials between 20% and 35% of the contract values, using three offshore entities to channel the funds. When internal concerns arose, certain BCG employees in Portugal attempted to hide the agent’s activities by backdating contracts and falsifying documentation, according to the DoJ.

The bribery scheme coincided with the latter years of José Eduardo dos Santos’s presidency, who stepped down in 2017 after 38 years. His successor, João Lourenço, swiftly pursued an anti-corruption agenda targeting associates of the Dos Santos regime. Amid these political shifts, the U.S. has sought to strengthen ties with Angola, Africa’s major oil producer. Notably, President Biden hosted Lourenço in Washington and the U.S. is aiding the revival of the Lobito Corridor, a key rail link connecting mines in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo to Angola’s coast.

BCG secured 12 contracts—11 with Angola's economy ministry and one with the National Bank of Angola—amounting to $22.5 million in revenue during the period under scrutiny. The firm has agreed to return $14.4 million in profits from these contracts. In response to the scandal, BCG closed its Luanda office and removed the implicated employees. The firm also committed to enhancing its compliance, internal controls, and training programs.

While the DoJ has not pursued charges against BCG, it retains the option to reopen the investigation if new information arises, and individual prosecutions remain on the table.

Read more here.

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