In the last ten years the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has paid out over $1 billion in rewards to whistleblowers and levied over $6 billion in fines arising from whistleblower tips. This is largely attributable to the SEC’s highly successful Whistleblower Rewards Programme. Ignorance of the programme can lead to costly mistakes and missed opportunities for both employers and employees. With the UK being home to thousands of companies regulated by the SEC, and consistently ranking as one of the SEC’s top sources of foreign tips, UK employment lawyers need to be able to advise clients on how the SEC whistleblower programme works and how it can affect them.
What Is The SEC?
The SEC is a U.S. government agency whose primary role is to make sure that companies with stock traded in the U.S. are obeying ‘securities laws’. Securities laws are a collection of U.S. laws that require companies to make honest and truthful disclosures to the market, keep accurate books and records, and abstain from all manner of fraud, bribery and financial misconduct.
What Companies In The UK Are Regulated By The SEC?
There is no shortage of companies in the UK that are regulated by the SEC. In fact, the SEC regulates some of the largest and most important corporations in the UK (and their subsidiaries). This includes:
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