On May 5, 2023, the SEC announced an award of nearly $279 million to a whistleblower who provided the SEC with information and assistance that led to the successful enforcement of SEC and related actions. This enormous award is the largest-ever in the history of the whistleblower program and is more than double the previous record $114 million award issued in October 2020 (see our post here).
Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, noted that “[t]he 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.” Creola Kelly, Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower, explained that “[t]he whistleblower’s sustained assistance including multiple interviews and written submissions was critical to the success of these actions,” and added that “[w]hile the whistleblower’s information did not prompt the opening of the Commission’s investigation, their information expanded the scope of misconduct charged.”
Since the inception of the whistleblower program in 2011, the SEC has awarded more than $1.5 billion to whistleblowers. The order granting this record-breaking award can be accessed here.