The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced it is permanently dismissing its civil lawsuit against Rio Tinto's former Chief Financial Officer, Guy Elliott, concerning allegations of overvaluing coal assets. The regulator had initially charged the mining giant, along with Elliott and former CEO Thomas Albanese, with fraud in 2017, accusing them of inflating the value of coal assets that Rio Tinto acquired for $3.7 billion and later sold for just $50 million a few years afterward.

The SEC alleged that Rio Tinto and the two executives failed to adhere to accounting standards to accurately assess the value of their assets. The SEC also stated that they attempted to conceal or delay the disclosure of problems associated with these assets. In 2023, Rio Tinto agreed to a final judgment from the SEC, without admitting or denying the allegations, which ordered the company to pay a $28 million civil penalty and required it to hire a consultant to review its compliance with accounting standards.

Albanese agreed to pay a $50,000 penalty, while the lawsuit against Elliott continued even after the 2023 judgment.