“Without this whistleblower’s courage, information, and assistance, it would have been extremely hard for law enforcement to discover this securities fraud on its own”, said Jane Norberg, Acting Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower. It credited the whistleblower’s “detailed tip and extensive assistance” with helping to stop a “well-hidden fraud” at the tipster’s company.
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At that time, the SEC said three Monsanto accounting and sales executives will pay individual penalties of $30,000 to $55,000.
The award was tied to an $80M settlement between the SEC and Monsanto in February, according to the whistleblower’s lawyer, following allegations that Monday misstated its earnings in connection with Roundup.
A representative for Monsanto declined to comment.
The spokesperson said it is routine to keep the name of the company and the fraud secret to protect the whistleblower’s identity.
“Internal gatekeepers like our client represent the first line of defense against financial wrongdoing at companies”, said Mr. Meissner.
Awards to whistleblowers by the SEC’s programme have now surpassed a total of $107 million since the agency launched the programme in 2011, the agency said in a statement on Tuesday. The largest was a $30 million prize given out in 2014.
“The SEC whistleblower program has had a transformative impact on the agency, enabling us to bring high quality enforcement cases quicker using fewer resources”, said Andrew Ceresney, Director of the SEC Division of Enforcement.
“Company employees are in unique positions behind-the-scenes to unravel complex or deeply buried wrongdoing”. “The SEC has issued more than $100 million in whistleblower awards in five years, demonstrating the invaluable information and assistance whistleblowers have provided to the agency and underscoring the program’s resounding success”.
“This is a watershed moment for the SEC’s whistleblower program”, said Jane Norberg, Acting Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower. Whistleblower awards can range from 10 percent to 30 percent of the money collected when the monetary sanctions exceed $1 million.
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-Aruna Viswanatha contributed to this article.
