OSC rewards offshore whistleblowers

Foreign tipsters who alerted the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) to misconduct that would otherwise have been hard for regulators to unearth have received a financial reward.

The regulator said it paid $240,000 to whistleblowers who provided “detailed independent analysis” that prompted it to open an investigation that ultimately led to successful action.

“The misconduct, which put substantial investor funds at risk, would have been challenging to uncover without the submission,” the OSC said in a release, adding that the tips came from outside Canada.

The specific details of whistleblower cases are not released in order to protect the identity of tipsters.

“Whistleblowers, whether they are located in Canada or abroad, play a vital role in exposing misconduct, protecting investors and maintaining the integrity of our financial markets,” said Jeff Kehoe, director of enforcement at the OSC, in a release.

“The comprehensive initial submission was critical in helping OSC staff identify the issue, develop its case and focus its resources from very early on in the investigation,” he added.

With this latest award, the OSC has now paid almost $9 million to whistleblowers since 2016, when it became the first — and still the only — Canadian regulator to launch a program that pays financial rewards for enforcement tips.

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