InfoBytes Blog
SEC awards $2 million to whistleblower
On October 29, the SEC announced that it awarded a whistleblower more than $2 million for providing information and assistance leading to a successful SEC enforcement action, as well as an action by the DOJ. According to the redacted order, the whistleblower voluntarily provided the same original information to the SEC and the DOJ, which prompted the opening of the investigations, as well as extensive ongoing assistance throughout the investigations. According to the SEC, the whistleblower had previously received an award for contributing to an SEC enforcement action based on the same information that supported the award for the related action, and was eligible for this award as a result of the recent amendments clarifying the types of actions that may be considered “related” under the whistleblower rules.
The SEC has awarded approximately $1.1 billion to 224 individuals since issuing its first award in 2012.