SICPA SA (CH) and Türkiye’s Tax-Stamp Tender: Bribery Allegations in a Complaint Filed in Switzerland

The record

Türkiye’s Revenue Administration launched an open tender under Article 19 of Public Procurement Law No. 4734 to establish the Product Tracking System for the 2014–2019 period.

According to a Turkish parliamentary document citing EKAP procurement record 2014/81560, the tender took place on 9 September 2014. The $170 million contract was awarded to a joint venture of SICPA ASSAN Ürün Güvenliği San. ve Tic. A.Ş. and SICPA Security Solutions SA. It was signed on 9 December 2014. [1]

The system uses tax stamps on tobacco products and alcoholic drinks, allowing them to be tracked through a central information system established at Türkiye’s Revenue Administration.

Swiss-based SICPA SA (CH) entered Türkiye’s tax-stamp business in 2007 through a partnership with Kibar Holding. Kibar sold its 50 per cent stake to its partner in 2015.

The complaint, dated 27 October 2025 and submitted to the Swiss federal prosecutor, sets out allegations concerning an initial tender for the same work, held on 3 February 2014 and later cancelled.

According to the complaint, Gate, Lettra and Eksim participated alongside SICPA Türkiye. It alleges that consultancy agreements with five people were signed through Trasseo Capital SA on 1 February 2014, two days before the tender.

The complaint identifies one of the parties to those agreements as the owner of rival bidder Lettra and says the same person also held a position of authority at Gate, another bidder.

It argues that the services listed in the agreements were not directly related to the tender. A draft agreement described in the complaint allegedly provided for 13.6 per cent of SICPA SA (CH)’s revenue from the public institution concerned to be paid to the consultants as commission.

According to the complaint, the draft containing the 13.6 per cent commission was circulated on 14 May 2014, but its effective date was backdated to 1 September 2013, before even the first tender.

The complaint alleges that Trasseo Capital SA transferred money to five people through Credit Suisse on 20 February 2014. It also alleges that those transfers were confirmed to SICPA SA (CH)’s then chief commercial officer.

Following the cancellation of the initial tender, a new tender for the same work was held on 9 September 2014. According to the complaint, Lettra did not participate, while Gate did. The complaint alleges that an internal communication attributed to SICPA Türkiye’s then general manager stated that Gate would bid on Lettra’s behalf.

The complaint further alleges that SICPA SA (CH) signed a consultancy agreement with Atlanta-based Avialift LLC on 27 May 2014, providing for the same commission rate. It identifies Avialift LLC’s sole authorised signatory as the same person connected with Lettra and Gate.

The complainant argues that the alleged conduct amounts to bribery and commission payments, bid rigging, forgery of official documents and forming an organisation for unlawful gain. These are the complaint’s allegations.

The Swiss Office of the Attorney General announced the outcome of its eight-year investigation into SICPA SA (CH) on 27 April 2023. The company was ordered to pay CHF81 million in total: a CHF1 million fine and a CHF80 million compensatory claim. [2]

That decision concerned organisational deficiencies in preventing bribery of foreign public officials. The prosecutor’s published findings addressed corporate governance, risk management and compliance. The final decision related to transactions in Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela. [2] [3]

The broader list of countries reported by Gotham City in 2019 included Togo, Ghana, the Philippines, Egypt, India, Kazakhstan, Colombia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, Vietnam, Venezuela, Ukraine and Brazil. Türkiye does not appear in that list or in the announced country scope of the 2023 decision. [2] [4]

SICPA SA (CH) said it would not appeal the 2023 decision but disagreed with its grounds. The company maintained that the actions of former employees and consultants had taken place without its knowledge and against its interests. That statement set out the company’s position on the 2023 case; it was not a response to the complaint concerning Türkiye. [5]

The complaint brings renewed attention to a tax-stamp system used for years to track tobacco and alcohol taxation in Türkiye. Its allegations concern a country outside the scope of SICPA SA (CH)’s 2023 Swiss decision. That decision is not a judgment on the allegations concerning Türkiye.

Based on reporting from: TBMM / Turkish Parliament · EKAP 2014/81560 · p. 1; Swiss Office of the Attorney General · Annual Report 2023 · p. 26; SWI swissinfo / Keystone-ATS · 27 April 2023; Gotham City · 29 August 2019; SICPA SA (CH) statement / GlobeNewswire · 27 April 2023.