The American Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday announced an award of more than $4 million to a whistleblower whose original information alerted the agency to a fraud.

The SEC’s whistleblower programme has awarded more than $111 million to 34 whistleblowers since its inception in 2011.

“Our programme continues to incentivize whistleblowers to come forward with solid information that helps us bring violators to justice before more wrongdoing can occur,” said Jane Norberg, Acting Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower.

By law, the SEC protects the confidentiality of whistleblowers and does not disclose information that might directly or indirectly reveal a whistleblower’s identity.

Whistleblowers may be eligible for an award when they voluntarily provide the SEC with unique and useful information that leads to a successful enforcement action.  Whistleblower awards can range from 10 percent to 30 percent of the money collected when the monetary sanctions exceed $1 million.

All payments are made out of an investor protection fund established by Congress that is financed through monetary sanctions paid to the SEC by securities law violators.

No money has been taken or withheld from harmed investors to pay whistleblower awards.