Will New Whistleblower Program Really Help SEC Investigations?

“It’s a new SEC,” Jordan Thomas told Fox Business News in January, characterizing the agency’s renewed commitment and enhanced law enforcement capabilities under its new whistleblower program. With the significant employment protections and the possibility for substantial monetary awards, whistleblowers have new reasons to provide the SEC and other enforcement bodies with early and invaluable assistance in detecting and deterring violations of the federal securities laws. With actionable intelligence provided by whistleblowers, Thomas explained that enforcement authorities will be better positioned to investigate and prosecute senior executives at the helm of major fraud schemes. These high level fraudsters historically have been difficult for the authorities to identify and prosecute. In this way, whistleblowers will be a game changer, playing a critical and much needed role in preventing the serial misconduct that has eroded public trust and caused widespread harm to the global economy.