Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri delivered remarks on August 1, 2024, announcing the launch of the Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program. This initiative aims to enhance the Department of Justice's enforcement efforts and encourage corporate accountability.
"The Criminal Division is on the front lines of the department’s efforts to hold culpable individuals and companies accountable for corporate crime," Argentieri stated. "We also lead the way in developing innovative policies designed to enhance the department’s enforcement work and encourage companies to be good corporate citizens."
The new program focuses on four areas of corporate crime not covered by existing whistleblower programs: foreign corruption, crimes involving financial institutions, corrupt conduct within the United States, and health care fraud involving private insurers.
Argentieri highlighted that while some foreign corruption cases fall under the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) whistleblower program, many do not. She cited cases involving bribery at international commodity trading companies resulting in significant financial penalties but not covered by SEC regulations. "Our whistleblower program would reach that type of foreign corruption and help ensure accountability for corporate wrongdoers," she noted.
Regarding financial institutions, Argentieri emphasized their role as a defense against illicit finance. The pilot program encourages reporting abuses not covered by existing programs, including obstruction or defrauding financial regulators. She referenced notable cases such as Binance and Danske Bank to illustrate these points.
The program also targets corrupt conduct within the United States and health care fraud involving private insurers—areas where current whistleblower protections are lacking despite significant estimated fraud levels.
To incentivize reporting, an amendment to the Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy was announced. Companies that report misconduct within 120 days after receiving an internal report from a whistleblower will be eligible for a presumption of declination if they fully cooperate and remediate.
Argentieri concluded with clear messages for employees and company executives: "If you are aware of criminal misconduct at your company, now is the time to come forward to the Criminal Division." She added, "We are using more tools than ever before to identify corporate misconduct... Call us before we call you."
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