The U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission, or CFTC, recently announced that it had awarded a whistleblower who had come forward with information leading to an enforcement action a $50,000 award. This is the fourth award that the CFTC has made to a whistleblower since it began making awards two years ago in 2014. The award is significantly lower than the last award it made earlier this year of $10,000,000 but the fact that the CFTC has made awards with such a wide monetary range indicates that it takes violations of the Commodities Exchange Act seriously and will reward whistleblowers who bring forth information even when the penalties are relatively small.
CFTC Whistleblower Claims Are Kept Confidential
Beyond the fact that the $50,000 award was made, few details are available regarding the nature of the underlying facts or enforcement action, or the identity of the whistleblower. In the press release announcing the award, the CFTC said only that the award represents “between 10 percent and 30 percent of the monetary sanctions collected to date, and the whistleblower will be entitled to the same percentage of any additional amounts collected” and furthermore that, “By law, the CFTC protects the confidentiality of whistleblowers and does not disclose information that might directly or indirectly reveal a whistleblower’s identity.”
While those of us who are in the world of providing legal guidance to whistleblowers in recovering monetary awards would love to know the underlying details of the facts in the matter, we recognize that the confidential aspect of the CFTC’s whistleblower program is a great benefit to the courageous people who provide information to the CFTC as it protects their identity and careers and gives them a safe and secure way to see that wrongdoers are held accountable while those who honor their duty to report such wrongdoing are rewarded.
CFTC Whistleblower Rewards Are on the Rise
Although the CFTC Whistleblower program may have gotten off to a slow start, this $50,000 award is the third award made in the past 10 months, suggesting that more and more whistleblower awards are to come. The head of the CFTC’s whistleblower program stated, “Whistleblowers continue to be an important weapon in the CFTC’s arsenal, and we are dedicated to rewarding valuable information and cooperation.”
If you are aware of violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and have information showing such violations, you too could be eligible for a large whistleblower award. This is true whether you are an employee or coworker of a violator, or even a competitor or simply an industry observer. It is important to act quickly, however, as the CFTC will only provide rewards for information it is receiving for the first time. At Kreindler & Associates we help individuals with information about Commodity Exchange Act violations to get the rewards they deserve. Contact us today to discuss pursuing your reward.
