In August 2012, the SEC broke new ground when it issued its first-ever whistleblower award under Dodd-Frank. The $50,000 award came pursuant to a provision in Dodd-Frank that authorized the SEC’s whistleblower program to reward individuals who provided it with high-quality original information that led to an SEC enforcement action in which more than $1 million in sanctions was ordered. The SEC stated at the time that the award was based on the $150,000 the SEC had collected thus far and “any increase in the sanctions ordered and collected will increase payments to the whistleblower.” On Friday, the SEC still-unidentified first whistleblower had his or her initial $50,000 award quadrupled when the SEC announced that this whistleblower will now receive an additional $150,000 payout after the SEC collected additional funds in the case.
