SEC whistleblower nets $50 million payout, most ever

Fox Business ^ | 6/5/20 | Lucas Manfredi

[Nero Germanicus]

The Securities and Exchange Commission has awarded a record $50 million payout through its Whistleblower Program to an individual who provided "detailed, firsthand observations of misconduct by a company" that led to enforcement action returning "a significant amount of money to harmed investors."

“This award marks several milestones for the whistleblower program,” said Jane Norberg, chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower, in an agency release Thursday. "Whistleblowers have proven to be a critical tool in the enforcement arsenal to combat fraud and protect investors.”

The award is the largest amount given to a single individual under the SEC whistleblower program since a $39 million payout in 2018. A separate $50 million award that same year was split between two whistleblowers.

Since issuing its first whistleblower award in 2012, the SEC has awarded over $500 million to 83 individuals. Over $100 million has been distributed in the current fiscal year alone. The SEC started the program in 2011, according to its website.

Individuals are eligible for an SEC whistleblower award by providing "original, timely, and credible information that leads to a successful enforcement action."

[Nero Germanicus]

A former trader at Bank of New York Mellon Corp. who alerted authorities to the bank’s pattern of overcharging big clients on currency trades is the whistleblower.

[Ed Condon]

It takes money to make money, and the money you make with that money, makes more money. What’s wrong with that?

[headstamp 2]

[[[It takes money to make money, and the money you make with that money, makes more money. What’s wrong with that?]]]

Its costs money, because it saves money.

[captain_dave]

I’m sure he’ll have a target on his back. He’d better change his name and move far away.

[Verginius Rufus]

Oh. That SEC. My first thought was the football conference.