By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A whistleblower has been paid the sum of $4 million by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Acting Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower, Jane Norberg, disclosed this on Tuesday.
It was revealed that the whistleblower’s original information alerted SEC to a fraud, which prompted an action taken to tackle the wrongdoing.
“Our program continues to incentivize whistleblowers to come forward with solid information that helps us bring violators to justice before more wrongdoing can occur,” SEC said.
It was also disclosed that the agency has awarded over $111 million to 34 whistleblowers since its inception in 2011.
All payments were made out of an investor protection fund established by Congress that is financed through monetary sanctions paid to the SEC by securities law violators. No money has been taken or withheld from harmed investors to pay whistleblower awards.
By law, the SEC protects the confidentiality of whistleblowers and does not disclose information that might directly or indirectly reveal their identity.
They may be eligible for an award when they voluntarily provide the SEC with unique and useful information that leads to a successful enforcement action and can get from 10 percent to 30 percent of the money collected when the monetary sanctions exceed $1 million.
