The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States announced on Friday that two whistleblowers would get a total of $11.5 million as an award for divulging critical information on that aids the regulator’s investigation. Based on a press release from the watchdog, the assistance rendered from these individuals has helped the Securities and Exchange Commission in making a successful enforcement action.
The SEC awarded the first whistleblower a total of $7 million, and the second person got more than $4.5 million. The whistleblower that got the major award was reported to have played a substantial role in the case as he was the one that supplied the information that led to the inquiry opening from the SEC on the violations of the rulings.
Speaking about the second whistleblower, the SEC authority said, “By comparison, the second whistleblower submitted his information much later after the investigation has been kickstarted. While he was aware of the wrongdoing, he delayed reporting the commission for several years.”
Till now, the Securities and Exchange Commission has given out about $2 billion to close to 212 individuals since it started its whistleblower program in 2012. The Acting Chief of the Office of the Whistleblower of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, Emily Pasquinelli, stated that “This case shows the continued commitment of the commission in rewarding individuals who submitted quality tips to the commission especially the timely ones. These people gave trustworthy information that helped the investigations of the SEC. Subsequently, their continued cooperation with the commission will help them to understand the violations better, which formed the pillar of their enforcement action.”
Recent Awards Given to Whistleblowers
Just last month, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission gave an award of $2.6 million to about five whistleblowers who helped them in three different cases. The watchdog gave $1.2 million to a singular whistleblower who single-handedly gave a valuable independent analysis for a case based on a complex algorithm.
With that said, these compromises have helped the staff of the SEC to save more time and even resources spent on their cases. This also helped them to increase the settlement negotiations of the enforcement action filed as a consequence. The other three individuals got about $1 million for their information that led to successful enforcement actions.
