SEC logged 3,001 whistleblower complaints last year

The SEC said today it received 3,001 whistleblower tips during the past fiscal year.

There were 115 FCPA-related complaints.

Corporate disclosures and offering frauds were most often reported. They accounted for a third of all complaints.

The SEC hasn't announced any FCPA whistleblower awards.

The numbers were reported in the SEC's annual Dodd Frank whistleblower report. It covers the period October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012.

Dodd Frank required the SEC to pay awards 'to eligible individuals who voluntarily provide original information that leads to successful Commission enforcement actions resulting in the imposition of monetary sanctions over $1,000,000, and certain successful related actions.'

Awards are 10% to 30% of the monetary sanctions collected based on the information provided by the whistleblower.

'In just its first year, the whistleblower program already has proven to be a valuable tool in helping us ferret out financial fraud,' said SEC Chairman Mary L. Schapiro. 'When insiders provide us with high-quality road maps of fraudulent wrongdoing, it reduces the length of time we spend investigating and saves the agency substantial resources.'

The SEC's first award was made in August. A payment of $50,000 went to a whistleblower who the agency said helped stop a fraud that was in progress.

Of the 3,001 complaints during the past fiscal year, 143 resulted in 'enforcement judgments and orders . . . that potentially qualify as eligible for a whistleblower award,' the SEC said.

It didn't say how many of the FCPA complaints may qualify for awards.

Complaints came from all 50 states and from 49 countries, the SEC said.

The SEC's annual Dodd Frank whistleblower report can be downloaded in pdf here.