三名美國銀行爆料者將分享8300萬美元舉報獎金

Three Bank of America whistleblowers who tipped off US authorities about misconduct at its broker-dealer arm Merrill Lynch are to share a record $83m in awards, according to the law firm that represents them. *

據代表三名美國銀行(Bank of America)爆料者的律所介紹，這三名向美國監管機構舉報美國銀行旗下經紀自營業務美銀美林(Bank of America Merrill Lynch)存在不當行爲的人士，將合計獲得創紀錄的8300萬美元獎金。

Information provided by the trio led the Securities and Exchange Commission to extract $415m from Merrill almost two years ago over the group’s failure to separate client money from its own, putting customer assets at risk.

依據這三人提供的信息，美國證交會(SEC)在將近兩年前以美銀美林未能將客戶資金與自有資金隔離開來、把客戶資產置於風險之中爲由，對美銀美林處以4.15億美元罰款。

The SEC said on Monday it had awarded nearly $50m to two individuals and $33m to a third. The regulator did not disclose their identities nor the information they provided.

週一美國證交會表示，它已獎勵其中兩人近5000萬美元，獎勵另一人3300萬美元。美國證交會未透露三人身份以及他們提供的信息。

Jordan Thomas, attorney with Labaton Sucharow, said the three individuals were his clients who had provided information about the Merrill Lynch case.

律師事務所Labaton Sucharow的律師喬丹?托馬斯(Jordan Thomas)表示，爲美銀美林案提供了信息的三人是他的客戶。

He declined to identify them but said they worked at a “senior” level. A “substantial part” of the total sums awarded would be donated to charity, he added.

托馬斯拒絕透露這三人身份，但他表示他們擔任“高層”職位。他還補充稱，獎金的“很大一部分”將捐贈給慈善機構。

Anonymity afforded by the SEC had allowed his clients to live “ordinary lives” and he expected them to be able to continue to work on Wall Street. Even Merrill Lynch was not aware of their identities, Mr Thomas added.

美國證交會確保了爆料者身份不爲外人所知，這讓他的客戶可以過上“正常的生活”，他預計他的客戶能夠繼續在華爾街工作。托馬斯補充道，就連美銀美林也不知道他們的身份。

“Without my clients it’s unlikely the SEC would have even known about the wrongdoing,” he said.

“沒有我的客戶，美國證交會甚至都不太可能知道這些不當行爲的有關情況，”他說。