Miami, Florida-based lender and financial services company Hencorp Becstone Capital LC (“Hencorp”) has agreed to pay $3.8 million to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act in connection with an elaborate scheme to defraud the Export-Import Bank of the United States. The Export-Import Bank, founded in 1934, is…
After Barclay’s agreed to pay a $450 million criminal fine following an investigatory probe conducted by the Department of Justice, regulators in countries all over the world continue to evaluate the full scope and impact of the LIBOR (London Interbank Offered Rate) rate manipulation scandal. Barclay’s admitted to manipulating the…
A mandated Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) whistleblower program, instituted as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Bill, reached its one year anniversary this week with a reported fund of $452 million set aside to pay out the first year’s rewards. Whistleblowers may receive between 10% and 30% of the…
Third party litigation has recently been a hot topic in the U.S., spurring speculation as to whether hedge funds will similarly begin funding whistleblower cases. A recent article on Pharmalot suggests that this leap may be likely and points out that whistleblower cases may be prime targets for investors, because…
When the SEC released proposed whistleblower regulations required under Dodd-Frank, they requested comments from the public. In response, Arent Fox, a law firm that represents Wal-Mart and drugmakers Elan and Genzyme, recently sent a letter to the SEC. In it, the firm advocated that the SEC first require employees to…
According to Dodd-Frank legislation, the SEC is required to adopt regulations regarding its whistleblower program no later than April 21 2011 (nine months from enactment). According to a recent report released by the SEC, the agency has set aside about $450 million for future payments to whistleblowers whose information results…
A securities fraud class-action lawsuit has been filed against Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. in U.S. District Court in Vermont. The suit was originally brought by a whistleblower alleging accounting irregularities. Under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the SEC may award between 10 percent and 30…
New whistleblower provisions in the recently passed Dodd-Frank Act enable whistleblowers to receive rewards for reporting violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). The FCPA prohibits bribery of foreign government officials in international business transactions and false entries in books and records of those companies within the statute. Whistleblowers…
Charles J. Antonucci, Sr., former President and Chief Executive Officer of Park Avenue Bank is the first to be criminally charged for attempting to defraud the Troubled Asset Relief Program (“TARP”). The case was unsealed in March in the southern district court of Manhattan. Agents of the Special Inspector General…
With the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act (AKA the Financial Reform Bill), the SEC now has more power to reward whistleblowers who report securities law violations with substantial payments. The first of these rewards came on July 23rd when Karen and Glen Kaiser of Connecticut received $1 million for their…