The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revealed it has awarded five individuals who provided information and assistance in three separate enforcement proceedings.
The five whistleblowers received a total of $2.6 million for their cooperation.
One individual received $1.2 million from the regulator for providing valuable independent analysis based upon a complex algorithm they developed and applied to publicly available data. The Commission highlighted in the announced that this assistance saved the staff time and resources, the whistleblower also helped during settlement negotiations of an enforcement action.
Three individuals received more than $1 million. The information they provided led to a successful enforcement action. The SEC noted that the whistleblowers held compliance roles at the company, however they remained eligible for an award because they submitted their information more than 120 days after the alleged conduct had been reported internally. The first of the three received the biggest reward for providing extraordinary assistance and comprehensive information that was vital to the success of the enforcement action.
SEC awarded a whistleblower over $350,000 for providing independent analysis which led to a successful enforcement action. With unusual effort and expertise developed over many years, the individual identified patterns among publicly available information which allowed the regulator to quickly identify and prevent wrongdoing and to preserve assets.
Emily Pasquinelli, Acting Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower said:
Today’s awards demonstrate the Commission’s commitment to reward whistleblowers who provide valuable information, developed either from a whistleblower’s independent knowledge or the whistleblower’s independent analysis, which substantially contributes to a successful enforcement action.
So far, the agency has awarded over $959 million to a total of 203 individuals since the first award was issued in 2012. Payment of the awards is taken out of an investor protection fund set up by Congress. It is financed through monetary sanctions of security law violations paid to SEC.
To be eligible for the award, a whistleblower needs to voluntarily provide the commission with reliable information that leads to successful enforcement action. The awards range between 10 and 30 % of the money collected by SEC when the sanction is for more than $1 million.
According to the Dodd-Frank Act, SEC must protect the identity of the whistleblower and not disclose any information that could reveal it.
Earlier in August, the SEC issued whistleblower awards in total of more than $4 million for individuals who provided information and assistance in two separate enforcement proceedings.
