Alliance One was formed from a merger between Dimon Incorporated and Standard Commercial Corporation in 2005. AOI-Kyrgyzstan admitted that employees of Dimon’s Kyrgyz subsidiary paid a total of approximately US$3 million in bribes from 1996 to 2004 to various officials in the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, including officials of the Kyrgyz Tamekisi, a government entity that controlled and regulated the tobacco industry in Kyrgyzstan. Bribes totalling US$254,262 were made to five local provincial government officials, known as "Akims", to obtain permission to purchase tobacco from local growers during the same period.