UK fraud investigators have made three arrests in dawn raids targeting alleged bribery by a British company during the construction of a Dutch datacentre for Microsoft.
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said on Wednesday that it was targeting the UK company Blu-3 and former associates of the global construction firm Mace Group. Individuals at Blu-3 are suspected of paying more than £3m in bribes to the people linked to Mace Group.
More than 70 investigators searched four homes and one commercial property in London, Kent, Surrey and Somerset on Wednesday morning, the SFO said. Authorities in Monaco simultaneously searched a suspect’s premises with help from the UK.
Three people were arrested for questioning, and evidence was seized for further examination. Microsoft is not under investigation.
Blu-3, founded in 2004, helps to manage large construction projects. It has helped Mace in the construction of the Shard in London, the UK’s tallest building, and was involved in the regeneration of London’s Battersea power station and the Chelsea Barracks. It has also worked on the HS2 railway project, for Transport for London and for the struggling Thames Water.
More recently, Blu-3 has focused on datacentres, amid a boom in demand for buildings to house the computer servers on which internet and artificial intelligence companies rely. It made revenues of nearly £100m in the year to March 2024, and said it had a “strong pipeline of work for 2025”, according to accounts published before the arrests.
Blu-3 first entered the datacentre market in the Netherlands in 2014. Its website refers to a “large-scale datacentre project on behalf of a blue chip software company” managed by Mace in Middenmeer, north Holland.
Mace Group, which employs more than 7,400 people, made revenues of £2.4bn in 2023. The UK-headquartered company has worked on a wide range of projects, including Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the Tate Modern gallery extension.
The SFO has faced scrutiny over the length of its investigations, as well as other troubles such as the £250m cost of an investigation into Kazakh mining company Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation that resulted in no charges.
Nick Ephgrave, the director of the SFO, said: “Paying bribes to do business undermines our financial markets, the reputation of British companies and the rule of law and will not be tolerated. Today’s action is a reminder that we will take rapid and robust action to tackle suspected bribery and corruption wherever it appears – at home and overseas.”
The solicitor general and Labour MP, Lucy Rigby, attended one of the arrests in north London this morning.
A Mace spokesperson said: “Mace has a zero tolerance approach to breaches of our code of ethics and takes any allegations of bribery extremely seriously. We are committed to fully supporting the Serious Fraud Office in investigating allegations against any former associates of the group.”
Blu-3 and Microsoft were approached for comment.
