Wall Street Moles Go to New York’s Top Cop, Spurning SEC Cash

In discussing a recent trend in why whistleblowers, whose desire for quick results when taking tips or complaints to the SEC, were approaching the New York Attorney General, [prior firm] partner Jordan A. Thomas said, “The SEC receives thousands of whistleblower tips every year, which they can only investigate a fraction of.” At the same time, he added, “an individual investigation can take years to complete due to the sheer amount of discovery that is required to successfully put a case together.”

Thomas, the former SEC enforcement attorney, warns that monetary reward isn’t the only thing motivating informants. “Some just want to right what they see as a wrong,” he said. “Others feel unfairly retaliated against, which drives them to report wrongdoing to the various regulators and law-enforcement groups.”