The Securities and Exchange Commission announced awards of approximately $40 million to two whistleblowers whose information and assistance contributed to the success of an SEC enforcement action.
The first whistleblower, whose information caused the opening of the investigation and exposed difficult-to-detect violations, will receive an award of approximately $32 million. The first whistleblower also provided substantial assistance to the staff, including identifying witnesses and helping the staff to understand complex fact patterns. The second whistleblower, who submitted important new information during the course of the investigation but waited several years to report to the Commission, will receive an award of approximately $8 million.
“Today’s whistleblowers underscore the importance of the SEC’s whistleblower program to the agency’s enforcement efforts,” said Emily Pasquinelli, Acting Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower. “These whistleblowers reported critical information that aided the Commission’s investigation and provided extensive, ongoing cooperation that helped the Commission to stop the wrongdoing and protect the capital markets.”
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Mark Astarita is a nationally recognized securities attorney, who represents investors, financial professionals and firms in securities litigation, arbitration and regulatory matters, including SEC and FINRA investigations and enforcement proceedings.
He is a partner in the national securities law firm Sallah Astarita & Cox, LLC, and the founder of The Securities Law Home Page - SECLaw.com, which was one of the first legal topic sites on the Internet. It went online in 1995 and is updated daily with news, commentary and securities law related links.
