The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on Tuesday that a whistleblower who provided “detailed and specific information about serious misconduct” and gave the regulator additional assistance during its investigation will receive an reward of almost US$4 million.
“Not only did this whistleblower step forward and report suspicious conduct, but continued to help after we opened our investigation,” says Jane Norberg, chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower, in a statement. “Whistleblowers with specialized experience or expertise can help us expend fewer resources in our investigations and bring enforcement actions more efficiently.”
With this latest award, the SEC says that approximately US$153 million has now been awarded to 43 whistleblowers who have provided the regulator with information leading to successful enforcement action. These enforcement actions sparked by whistleblower tips have generated more than US$953 million in financial remedies against violators, the SEC says. (The SEC doesn’t reveal the details of these cases in order to protect the identity of whistleblowers.)
Last year, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) established the first whistleblower program at a Canadian regulator that offers financial rewards for information leading to major enforcement action.