SEC Whistleblower Lawyer Blog
The SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower recently awarded two individuals a total of $2.9M in payments after alerting investigators to improper conduct in two separate cases. In a press release dated February 19, 2021, the SEC announced two awards:
- The first case led to a $2.2 million whistleblower award after providing investigators with quality information that resulted in an SEC enforcement action. Because of this information, the SEC was able to thwart wrongdoing and return millions of dollars to the defrauded investors.
- The whistleblower in the second case alerted the SEC to a fraudulent reporting scheme that led to the investigation. This whistleblower helped to identify key documents and witnesses, as well as provided other crucial evidence in the case. The SEC awarded this whistleblower $700,000 as a result.
Jane Norbeg, Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower stated: “Both whistleblowers who received awards today raised their concerns internally and then timely reported those concerns to the Commission. The return of millions of dollars to harmed clients in one matter, and the uncovering of a fraudulent scheme in the other matter, underscore the tremendous value that whistleblowers provide.”
At Securitieswhistleblowerattorneys.com, our attorneys have seen a rise in SEC whistleblower awards over the last few months which focus on the ongoing help and assistance provided by the whistleblower.
Who Provides This Information To The SEC?
SEC Whistleblowers are:
- Individuals with first-hand knowledge of fraudulent behavior and practices, such as current and former employees
- Investors who have lost money to fraudulent brokers, investors and other dishonest financial services representatives
- Outsiders who offered detailed information about fraudulent practices
- Foreign nationals who alerted the SEC to practices in other countries that directly impacted both US investors and the American marketplace
The SEC’s process begins when someone notifies the agency of a potential wrongdoing, and the investigative process is implemented.
The funds for these awards does not come from the recovered monies of the investors. The money paid to whistleblowers is taken from a fund established by Congress and funded with financial sanctions paid to the SEC by those who violate securities law.
These awards are paid to those whistleblowers whose information leads to actions in which there are $1M or more in sanctions. The whistleblowers are paid between 10% and 30% of the monies collected in each case.
Tips That Lead To Awards
Since the inception of the SEC’s Office Of The Whistleblower in 2011, over $700 million has been awarded to individuals after tips that led to enforcement actions. These actions have also resulted in $2 billion in financial remedies for defrauded investors.
From 2011, through 2018, more than 26,000 tips from all 50 states and 114 foreign countries were submitted to the SEC for investigation.
The identity and identifying information about each whistleblower is kept confidential to protect against any type of retaliation. Company and employee information for the entities involved is also kept out of the press release and the public domain to protect the whistleblower.
You can read more about the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower on their website, including the 48-page OWC annual report.
Retaining Experienced SEC Whistleblower Attorneys
Our SEC whistleblower attorneys can help you if you have information regarding securities or investment fraud, violations of federal securities laws, false filings, market manipulation, or other misconduct. To be eligible, you must provide timely, credible, and original information or analysis.
Whistleblowers help the public by notifying authorities of conduct that harms the public, while also earning financial compensation for themselves.
Contact us through our online form or at (800) 975-4345 for a consultation. Our attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, which means it costs nothing to hire us and we have the incentive to get you the maximum award.