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The Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of the Whistleblower told Congress on Thursday that it received 5,282 tips in 2018, an 18% jump from tips received in FY 2017, and the highest increase — nearly 76% percent — since the program started in FY 2012.
In its 40-page annual report to Congress, the agency's whistleblower office said that it paid awards totaling $168 million to 13 individuals in FY 2018, which compares to awards of nearly $50 million to 12 whistleblowers in 2017.
The awards in 2018 included the largest SEC whistleblower awards so far: $50 million to two whistleblowers who filed a whistleblower complaint jointly, and individual awards of $39 million and $33 million.
(Related: IRS Hands Out $13.6M Whistleblower Award)
"The increasing number of whistleblowers and awards shows that the SEC whistleblower program continues to be very strong," said Sean McKessy, the former head of the whistleblower office who's now a partner at Phillips & Cohen, in a statement. "Many, if not most, of the SEC's investigations in recent years have been launched as a result of detailed information provided by whistleblowers."
Erika Kelton, a Phillips & Cohen partner, added that "whistleblowers should be encouraged by the SEC's willingness to pay sizeable awards when their information and assistance help stop major securities violations and result in large monetary sanctions." Kelton has secured SEC whistleblower awards for three clients.
