The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) announced that it awarded $1,500,000 to a whistleblower under the commission's efforts to safeguard investors.
This award was given in recognition of the whistleblower's role in providing specific, non-public information that enabled the OSC to take timely action to protect investors from potential harm.
The individual with insider access played a key role by contributing information that expanded the scope of an ongoing investigation and led to a successful enforcement action. According to the OSC, this contribution underscored the vital importance of whistleblowers in securities regulation, especially when exposing early-stage misconduct that might otherwise remain undetected.
Jeff Kehoe, the OSC's director of enforcement, highlighted the essential role of internal whistleblowers. "The whistleblower had access to valuable information regarding early-stage misconduct that was critical to our ability to quickly respond and protect investors from further harm."
Kehoe added, "Internal whistleblowers can play a critical role in identifying harmful misconduct at an early stage that would be almost impossible to detect without their assistance. We will continue to build upon our successes to strengthen this enforcement tool."
The OSC's Whistleblower Program, known for offering up to $5 million in awards for information leading to successful enforcement action, aims to encourage individuals to report potential violations of Ontario securities law. This includes a range of misconduct, such as illegal insider trading and corporate disclosure violations. To date, the program has disbursed over $10 million in awards.
As the OSC continues to work on its mandate of protecting investors and fostering a fair and efficient capital market, it also encourages more individuals to come forward with non-public information. The commission is particularly interested in tips regarding novel and emerging issues, such as greenwashing, audit-related misconduct by accounting firms, and misusing algorithms and artificial intelligence.