SEC whistleblower gets record $279M payout — name, case withheld

The Securities and Exchange Commission awarded $279 million to a whistleblower who helped bring enforcement actions in the largest payout in the agency’s history.

The securities market regulator announced the record award on Friday without divulging the name of the whistleblower or the case that led to the windfall.

“The size of today’s award – the highest in our program’s history – not only incentivizes whistleblowers to come forward with accurate information about potential securities law violations, but also reflects the tremendous success of our whistleblower program,” said Gurbir S. Grewal, the SEC’s Division of Enforcement director.

The previous record was a $114 million whistleblower award, which was paid out to an anonymous person in October 2020.

Whistleblowers whose tips lead to successful civil-enforcement actions are eligible to receive anywhere from 10%-30% of the fines collected as a reward, assuming the SEC collects more than $1 million, the site states.

The person that received the latest award voluntarily provided information to the SEC that led to successful enforcement actions by the regulator and two related actions, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The SEC told The Journal that it had already opened an investigation of the unnamed company and that the staff was aware of the misconduct when the whistleblower came forward. The Commission said the tipster expanded the SEC’s probe with information provided through written submissions and interviews.

The unnamed award recipient’s cooperation with other agencies, the agencies’ related actions and resulting enforcement actions increased the award amount, the SEC said.