SEC Awards Totaling Nearly $2.6 Million to Whistleblowers

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on Friday that it has awarded approximately totaling $2.6 million to five whistleblowers for they have offered information and assistance in three separate enforcement proceedings.

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As detailed in the announcement, one of the whistleblower has been rewarded with around $1.2 million for providing valuable independent analysis based upon a complex algorithm the whistleblower developed and applied to publicly available data. The whistleblower’s information saved the Commission staff time and resources and helped the staff during settlement negotiations of an enforcement action.

Besides, the SEC awarded over $1 million to three individuals whose information and assistance led to a successful enforcement action. While the whistleblowers held compliance roles at the company, they remained eligible for an award because they submitted their information to the Commission more than 120 days after the alleged conduct had been reported internally. The first claimant, who received the highest award, provided extraordinary assistance and comprehensive information that proved vital to the success of the enforcement action.

Furthermore, the regulator awarded a whistleblower more than $350,000 for providing independent analysis that led to a successful enforcement action. Based on unusual effort and expertise developed over many years, the whistleblower identified patterns among publicly available information that allowed the Commission to quickly identify and prevent wrongdoing and to preserve assets.

Up to now, the SEC has awarded approximately $959 million to 203 individuals since issuing its first award in 2012.