SEC awards $15 million to whistleblowers

Securities SEC Whistleblower Enforcement Investigations

On November 10, the SEC announced awards totaling over $15 million to two whistleblowers whose original information and voluntary assistance led to a successful SEC enforcement action. According to the redacted order, the first whistleblower alerted Commission staff to a fraudulent scheme, which prompted the opening of the investigation. While still substantial, the second whistleblower’s information was more limited in nature, and “had less of an impact on the success of the enforcement action,” as reflected in the respective amounts awarded. The SEC has awarded approximately $1.1 billion to 226 individuals since issuing its first award in 2012.