Nigerian Whistleblowers

A key U.S. anti-corruption law known as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) now allows Nigerians to receive large monetary rewards for whistleblower disclosures, and also protects whistleblowers from retaliation. Those with information about foreign corruption, such as bribery, money laundering, securities fraud, or public procurement fraud, must work with a U.S. attorney to become eligible for rewards and protection.

Whistleblowers residing in Nigeria have the right to report violations of the FCPA and are entitled to financial compensation if their information is used as part of a successful law enforcement action.

The FCPA also allows whistleblowers to make their claims anonymously in the United States, reducing the risk of retaliation. It covers not only all U.S. persons and firms doing business abroad, including foreign branches, but also foreign firms trading in stocks in the United States.

Other Reward Laws

In addition to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, other strong U.S. whistleblower laws may also apply to foreign nationals in cases of securities fraud, money laundering, or procurement fraud:

• SEC Whistleblower Program – under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), this program pays rewards to qualified Nigerian whistleblowers who report a violation of U.S. securities law, such as bribes paid to foreign officials. Such payments violate the FCPA, which is incorporated in part into U.S. securities laws.Section 922 of the Dodd-Frank Act awards whistleblowers 10 to 30 percent of any monetary recovery of over $1 million that the SEC obtains from an offending party through enforcement actions.
• CFTC Whistleblower Program – the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is a U.S. government agency that regulates futures and options markets. As such, it has jurisdiction over market manipulation that occurs within the United States or that affects U.S. markets. If a trader or other individual engages in market manipulation of international commodities, the CFTC can take action against that person if the manipulation affects U.S. markets or otherwise violates U.S. laws. Whistleblowers are eligible to receive between 10 and 30 percent of the monetary sanctions collected.
• IRS Whistleblower Office Awards – Many rewards have been granted to non-U.S. whistleblowers who rely on the FCPA to make their disclosures. For instance, In 2015, an international tax fraud whistleblower, Bradley Birkenfeld, received the largest reward ever given to an individual under U.S. federal whistleblower reward laws.The IRS will pay an award of at least 15 percent, but not more than 30 percent of the proceeds collected attributable to the information submitted by the whistleblower.
• False Claims Act and Qui Tam – Public procurement fraud is a type of corruption that occurs when an individual or organization abuses their position or authority to gain an unfair advantage or financial benefit in the process of purchasing goods or services for a government agency or public entity. This can include practices such as bid rigging, collusive bidding, bribery, kickbacks, and falsifying documents or records to manipulate the procurement process.Under the False Claims Act, whistleblowers can receive a reward of between 15% and 30% of the money recovered by the government as a result of their disclosure. The exact amount of the reward will be determined by the court and may depend on various factors such as the quality and timeliness of the information provided, the degree of assistance provided by the whistleblower, and the extent to which the whistleblower participated in the wrongdoing.

If you are a Nigerian citizen and know of foreign corruption, get in touch with our Foreign Corrupt Practice Act attorneys today to report your concerns and file for rewards. Our team has been representing whistleblowers for more than 30 years, and have intimate knowledge of all U.S. whistleblower laws.