$13 Million Whistleblower Award First from SEC of 2022

On January 6, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) handed down its first whistleblower award of the year, a sizable $13 million pot to a whistleblower who provided the agency with unique information about ongoing fraud. The whistleblower’s original information aided the SEC in obtaining emergency relief to minimize the losses of investors.

SEC representatives said the whistleblower’s report came promptly and that the whistleblower in question offered extensive assistance to the agency’s staff by meeting in person and helping them understand the scheme.

As always, the SEC did not provide the name of the whistleblower or detailed information about the scheme to protect the whistleblower’s identity and privacy.

SEC whistleblower eligibility

Under the SEC’s successful whistleblower program, which has now been running for more than a decade, qualified whistleblowers can receive 10 to 30 percent of money recovered by the government if sanctions exceed $1 million. Factors in determining that exact percentage include the originality and significance of the information, the level of extra assistance provided by the whistleblower, the timeliness of the whistleblower’s report and any culpability on the part of the whistleblower in the misconduct.

The 2021 fiscal year was a record year for the SEC’s whistleblower program, with a total of $564 million to 108 whistleblowers, both single-year records. The SEC’s largest award ever came in October when a whistleblower received $114 million.

If you have information about securities fraud and believe you qualify for a whistleblower claim, contact an experienced whistleblower attorney at Kardell Law Group to begin your case.