Business Integrity, Ethics and Compliance

This report analyses the approaches of the previous five B20 presidencies to addressing anti-corruption Collective Action. It captures lessons learned and provides recommendations for future B20/G20 cycles. It is primarily intended for upcoming B20/G20 presidencies, B20 Integrity & Compliance Task Force members and organisations engaging with the B20/G20.

About this report

You may share or republish this report under a Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence.

The report was funded by the Siemens Integrity Initiative, which supports organisations in the fight against corruption and fraud through Collective Action, education and training. The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not reflect the position of Siemens or the Siemens Integrity Initiative.

This book offers a comprehensive reflection on that journey and explores the growing impact of multi-stakeholder collaboration on promoting business integrity around the world. It aims to capture the living ecosystem of Collective Action as it exists today, its foundations, its progress and the possibilities it continues to offer for the future.

This Working Paper provides a theoretical and practical contribution to strengthening the evidence base for anti-corruption Collective Action – i.e. collaborative efforts by diverse actors from the private sector, civil society and public institutions to address integrity challenges that no single actor can resolve alone.

It combines a new conceptual framework for Collective Action initiatives, updated data and practical tools. Together, these will help researchers, practitioners and policymakers compare initiatives, test assumptions and design more effective collaborations.

The paper provides insights into how Collective Action works in practice; the impact of different social and political environments; how to link Collective Action with real-world improvements in corruption prevention; and whether initiatives’ activities are actually contributing to their stated goals.

About this report

This paper is made possible through the support of the Siemens Integrity Initiative.

The paper is published as part of the Basel Institute on Governance Working Paper series, ISSN: 2624-9650. It is a Diamond Open Access publication, also hosted on the Basel University Library’s open publishing platform eterna as part of our Basel Institute on Governance Working Paper Journal, with DOI: 10.12685/bigwp.2025.57.60.

You may share or republish it under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International Licence.

The contents are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Basel Institute on Governance, its donors and partners, or the University of Basel.

Since its first use by the World Bank in 2008, the concept of “anti-corruption Collective Action” has evolved into a well-established best practice to prevent corruption and strengthen business integrity.

This paper captures the specific characteristics of anti-corruption Collective Action that have emerged over time and translates them into an easy-to-grasp typology that reflects both the variety and unifying principles that make up the Collective Action ecosystem. It aims to:

• spark new impetus for engagement;
• open the concept to new stakeholders, topics and environments; and
• support existing initiatives in developing their long-term visions and aims.

In addition to supporting practitioners, updating the typology will also help strengthen the case for Collective Action as a normative corruption prevention practice.

About this report

The paper is published as part of the Basel Institute on Governance Working Paper series, ISSN: 2624-9650. It is a Diamond Open Access publication, also hosted on the Basel University Library’s open publishing platform eterna as part of our Basel Institute on Governance Working Paper Journal, with DOI: 10.12685/bigwp.2025.56.39.

You may share or republish it under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International Licence.

The contents are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Basel Institute on Governance, its donors and partners, or the University of Basel.

The changing landscape of anti-corruption regulation and enforcement has triggered important discussions around the role of ethics and compliance in business strategies and in the economy as a whole. It has also given impetus to the narrative that anti-corruption compliance programmes are inevitably costly, potentially ineffective and bureaucratic.

This ignores many of the positive advances in compliance that have been made in recent years, as well as the growing body of evidence supporting the business case for compliance.

This Quick Guide covers five broad areas in which mature and well-constructed ethics and compliance systems can benefit businesses even in the face of an uncertain regulatory and enforcement framework. It is based on a roundtable convened by the Basel Institute on Governance and bilateral discussions with key figures in the business and anti-corruption community.

About this Quick Guide

You are free to share and republish this work under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 Licence. It is part of the Basel Institute on Governance Quick Guide series, ISSN 2673-5229.