On July 17, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) awarded over $37 million to a whistleblower who voluntarily provided original information that contributed to the success of an enforcement action.

Through the SEC Whistleblower Program, qualified whistleblowers are eligible to receive an award of 10-30% of the funds collected in the enforcement action related to their disclosure. The Commission weighs a number of factors in determining the exact percentage to award a whistleblower.

According to the SEC, the whistleblower “provided information not previously known to the SEC and which significantly contributed to a successful enforcement action” and “also met with Enforcement staff and identified potential witnesses and documents, which conserved staff time and resources.”

The award order specifies that the whistleblower’s information included “identifying witnesses and documents that helped save staff time and resources.”

The award order further notes that “there are high law enforcement interests here, as tens of millions of dollars were returned to harmed investors in the underlying Covered Action.”

The SEC does not release any identifying information about award recipients in keeping with its anonymity and confidentiality protections.

“Today’s award illustrates the importance of the SEC’s whistleblower program, as the whistleblower’s information helped the agency return millions of dollars to harmed investors,” said Creola Kelly, Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower.

While the whistleblower voluntarily provided original information that contributed to the success of the enforcement action, the SEC notes that “the conduct was uncovered due to the work of staff in the Division of Examinations.”

Since the it was established with the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act in 2010, the SEC Whistleblower Program has received more than 80,000 whistleblower tips, awarded more than $1.9 billion to whistleblowers, and has recovered more than $6.3 billion in total monetary sanctions, including more than $4 billion in disgorgement of ill-gotten gains and interest.

According to SEC Chair Gary Gensler, the whistleblower program “has greatly aided the Commission’s work to protect investors.”

Geoff Schweller also contributed to this article.