GSK China Investigation Outcome
GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) today announced that the Changsha Intermediate People's Court in Hunan Province, China ruled that GSK China Investment Co. Ltd (GSKCI) has, according to Chinese law, offered money or property to non-government personnel in order to obtain improper commercial gains, and been found guilty of bribing non-government personnel. The verdict follows investigations initiated by China's Ministry of Public Security in June 2013.
As a result of the Court's verdict, GSKCI will pay a fine of £297 million (3 billion RMB at a currency exchange rate of 10.0980) to the Chinese government. This will be funded through existing cash resources. Associated costs and charges related to restructuring will be included in GSK's third quarter update.
The illegal activities of GSKCI are a clear breach of GSK's governance and compliance procedures; and are wholly contrary to the values and standards expected from GSK employees. GSK has published a statement of apology to the Chinese government and its people on its website (www.gsk-china.com).
GSK has co-operated fully with the authorities and has taken steps to comprehensively rectify the issues identified at the operations of GSKCI. This includes fundamentally changing the incentive program for its salesforces (decoupling sales targets from compensation); significantly reducing and changing engagement activities with healthcare professionals; and expanding processes for review and monitoring of invoicing and payments.