The generous $1 million award is expected to be the first of many as whistleblowers “frenzy” to report antitrust misconduct.
On January 29, 2026, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice announced its first-ever whistleblower payment within six months of unveiling its Whistleblower Rewards Program in mid-2025. The Rewards Program promised to award individuals in an amount equal to 15-30% of the criminal fine or recovery if they provide original information about antitrust violations impacting the United States Postal Service (“USPS”) that result in more than $1 million in harm.
The $1 million award came after a whistleblower provided information that led to a $3.28 million criminal fine and deferred prosecution agreement related to a 15-month bid-rigging conspiracy affecting online auction platforms for used vehicles. According to the DOJ press release, the link to the USPS was simple: co-conspirators sent documents in support of the bid rigging scheme via US mail.
In a speech touting the whistleblower award, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Omeed Assefi noted that the DOJ is “seeing a frenzy of people coming forward”—so much so that it is “becoming a rarity in which [DOJ’s] case does not include a whistleblower.” Assefi’s statement suggests that the DOJ views whistleblower payments as a critical tool for detecting future antitrust cartels.
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