SEC Gives Rare Whistleblower Bounty to Tipster With Audit Duties

The SEC has awarded about $300,000 to an unidentified whistleblower, the fourth individual with internal audit or compliance responsibilities to earn a bounty for helping with a successful agency case.

The tipster met with Securities and Exchange Commission staff more than a dozen times and identified possible witnesses, the agency said in an award order issued Monday. The whistleblower was aggressive in trying to remedy the wrongdoing and “suffered a unique hardship,” according to the order.

Individuals with internal audit or compliance duties typically aren’t eligible for SEC whistleblower awards, unless the wrongdoer interfered with an investigation or the tipster ...