CFTC Pays $350,000,000 to Whistleblowers!

[zasad@]

https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/SpeechesTestimony/romerostatement103123
"Statement of Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero In Support of the CFTC’s 2023 Annual Report on the Whistleblower Program and Customer Education Initiatives
October 31, 2023

As a former Inspector General who knows firsthand how important whistleblowers are, I wholeheartedly support whistleblowers and the CFTC’s Whistleblower Program, and am very proud of the Program’s outsized results.  Cumulatively, the CFTC has awarded almost $350 million to whistleblowers, with more than $3 billion in enforcement sanctions ordered in cases associated with those awards.  This includes $16 million in awards this year, including more than $15 million to two whistleblowers who provided significant information and assistance that led the CFTC to bring separate successful enforcement cases.

Whistleblowers play a vital role in supporting CFTC investigations related to fraud and other illegality.  The CFTC could not fully protect customers and markets without whistleblowers.  Whistleblowers help identify fraud and other illegality, interpret key evidence, and save considerable Commission resources and time.  The faster we can stop fraud, the more we can protect customers from harm."

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[Casdinyard]

While I think it's great that these people are getting the proper care and credit that they deserve, it's due time for the CFTC to actually find a reliable way to figure out how to enforce cases and laws besides relying upon these whistleblowers. We gotta keep in mind that even if these people have the cajones to carry their cause no matter how much threat is put under their head, it doesn't erase the fact that them going out there spewing truth about certain issues puts them at a definite risk, maybe even to their families.

Perhaps a more comprehensive way of figuring out whether certain people or entities are liable of the crimes they committed could be made where the government doesn't need to endanger people who have little to do with the situation. I guess it's good that we're paying them but the thing is their lives are at stake despite the fact.

[zasad@]

https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2023-234

"SEC Announces Enforcement Results for Fiscal Year 2023
Commission filed 784 enforcement actions, obtained orders for nearly $5 billion in financial remedies, and distributed nearly $1 billion to harmed investors

Washington D.C., Nov. 14, 2023 —
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it filed 784 total enforcement actions in fiscal year 2023, a 3 percent increase over fiscal year 2022, including 501 original, or “stand-alone,” enforcement actions, an 8 percent increase over the prior fiscal year. The SEC also filed 162 "follow-on" administrative proceedings seeking to bar or suspend individuals from certain functions in the securities markets based on criminal convictions, civil injunctions, or other orders and 121 actions against issuers who were allegedly delinquent in making required filings with the SEC."

It turns out to be profitable to keep Whistleblowers!

[Fiatless]

https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/SpeechesTestimony/romerostatement103123
"Statement of Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero In Support of the CFTC’s 2023 Annual Report on the Whistleblower Program and Customer Education Initiatives
October 31, 2023

As a former Inspector General who knows firsthand how important whistleblowers are, I wholeheartedly support whistleblowers and the CFTC’s Whistleblower Program, and am very proud of the Program’s outsized results.  Cumulatively, the CFTC has awarded almost $350 million to whistleblowers, with more than $3 billion in enforcement sanctions ordered in cases associated with those awards.  This includes $16 million in awards this year, including more than $15 million to two whistleblowers who provided significant information and assistance that led the CFTC to bring separate successful enforcement cases.

Whistleblowers are usually insiders who have worked or connected to the targeted organisation. They are mainly motivated by the financial gain they will derive if they leak vital information to law enforcement agencies. So it is not strange to see the Commodity Futures Trading Commission spending this much to settle whistleblowers. I hope the identity of these whistleblowers will not be leaked to the public someday which might put their lives in danger because there might also be moles in CFTC. 

Whistleblowers play a vital role in supporting CFTC investigations related to fraud and other illegality.  The CFTC could not fully protect customers and markets without whistleblowers.  Whistleblowers help identify fraud and other illegality, interpret key evidence, and save considerable Commission resources and time.  The faster we can stop fraud, the more we can protect customers from harm."

Whistleblowers don't just help reduce fraud and other criminal activities they also help these regulatory agencies make more money . Binance has just been fined $4.3 billion, which means more money for the CFTC and greater pay for whistleblowers.

It turns out to be profitable to keep Whistleblowers!

I totally support the effort of these government agencies to purge the crypto space from criminals and scammers. The crypto sector will attract more investors if these evil players are pushed out of the industry. But the CFTC shouldn't use its powers to witchhunt genuine crypto businesses. 

[yhiaali3]

Whistleblowers are usually insiders who have worked or connected to the targeted organisation. They are mainly motivated by the financial gain they will derive if they leak vital information to law enforcement agencies. So it is not strange to see the Commodity Futures Trading Commission spending this much to settle whistleblowers. I hope the identity of these whistleblowers will not be leaked to the public someday which might put their lives in danger because there might also be moles in CFTC. 

I believe that these whistleblowers will mostly be from within the institutions or companies targeted by the CFTC, these are mostly employees within these institutions and may be in good positions within these institutions and privy to a lot of sensitive information.

Of course, their main goal is to obtain money through reporting, and they may also be exempted from all legal or criminal charges and responsibilities due to their cooperation with the CFTC.

But they are playing a dangerous game, and the CFTC is unable to fully protect them if they are targeted as a result of the significant damage they inflict on these companies. We are accustomed to the US government abandoning its agents at the first opportunity.