On November 15, 2022 the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released its Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Program fiscal year (FY) 2022 Annual Report to Congress.[1] The same day, the SEC reported on the Enforcement Division’s FY 2022 activities.[2] Together, the two reports show that in 2022, the SEC Enforcement Division was extremely active. And, its future is buoyed by multiple high-dollar awards and a record-breaking number of whistleblower tips. The numbers in both reports suggest that next year, the SEC will continue to take an aggressive approach: We will likely see an increase in investigations activity and in the resulting penalties sought to be imposed by the Commission. Given the lag time from whistleblower submittal to resolution of any enforcement action, the reports also provide a glimpse into SEC Enforcement’s focus well beyond 2023.
A. The Whistleblower Program
By any metric, the SEC’s Whistleblower Program has been a resounding success since its first award in 2011. According to the Whistleblower Program’s FY 2022 report, in total, the SEC has paid more than $1.3 billion in 328 awards to whistleblowers. Investigations started or aided by whistleblower tips have resulted in $6.3 billion in total monetary sanctions, including $4 billion in disgorgement, of which $1.5 billion is scheduled to be returned to investors.
In FY 2022, the program had its second most successful year, paying $229 million in 103 awards. Five payouts comprised the bulk of the FY...
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