SEC awards nearly $3.5M to whistleblowers

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Friday it has issued nearly $3.5 million to four whistleblowers who provided information and help in a single covered action.

The SEC said in a statement that three joint whistleblowers provided agency staff with information that led it to open a new investigation and a successful enforcement action.

Another whistleblower provided insights based on publicly available information that focused the staff’s attention on new allegations that advanced the investigation, the SEC said in its statement.

Last month, the SEC announced a $1.25 million award to a whistleblower who provided “specific and credible” information that prompted its staff to open an investigation that resulted in a successful SEC action.