\t\t\t\tThe US Securities and Exchange Commission has announced two whistleblower awards this week. The first is almost $2.5M to an employee of a US government agency whose tip helped instigate the regulator\u2019s probe into the alleged misconduct. This individual provided additional help that allowed the SEC to \u201caddress\u201d the issue and accelerate the speed of the enforcement investigation. <\/p>\n
Two days later, the SEC announced another award, this one for over $1.7M to a company insider who handed over key information to stop a fraud that might have been hard to detect without this person’s help. As a result, investors that were harmed were able to recover millions of dollars. <\/p>\n
To date, since the SEC instituted its whistleblower award program, 46 individuals who voluntarily gave original and helpful information leading to a successful enforcement probe have been awarded $158M. To qualify for an award, money collected from the enforcement sanctions must be more than $1M, at which point the whistleblower may be entitled to 10-30% of these funds. <\/p>\n