ADM to Pay $40 Million to Settle SEC Accounting Fraud Probe (3)

Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. agreed to pay $40 million to settle a two-year federal investigation into the crop giant’s accounting practices that rocked its share price and eroded faith in the company’s transparency.

The civil penalty levied by the US Securities and Exchange Commission settles allegations that ADM and former executives engaged in accounting and disclosure fraud when they sought to boost the bottom line of ADM’s flailing nutrition business unit to meet the Chicago-based company’s targets.

ADM neither admitted nor denied the SEC’s allegations, which regulators detailed late Tuesday. The company also said the Department of Justice has closed its investigation ...