Key highlights from the SEC 2024 enforcement report 

On Nov. 22, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued its annual press release regarding the Enforcement Results for Fiscal Year 2024. 

Throughout 2024, the SEC filed 583 enforcement actions. These included 431 new enforcement actions, 93 “follow-on” administrative proceedings and 59 actions against issuers delinquent in SEC required filings. Compared to the previous fiscal year, the total enforcement actions of 583 represent a 26% decrease in filings of which 16% is a decrease in new enforcement actions. 

The 2024 actions resulted in $8.2 billion in financial remedies, the largest amount in SEC history. These included $6.1 billion in disgorgement and $2.1 billion in civil penalties. Over 50% of the total financial remedies resulted from one SEC case which was among the largest securities fraud charges in United States history. 

During the year, the SEC also distributed $345 million to harmed investors and awarded $255 million to whistleblowers. Overall, the SEC received more than 40,000 tips, complaints and referrals, with over 24,000 of these being whistleblower tips. This marked the highest number of tips received in a single year in SEC history. Furthermore, 124 individuals were barred from serving as officers and directors of public companies by the SEC this year. 

To promote compliance, the SEC rewarded various public issuers, broker-dealers and advisory firms with reduced or no civil penalties for cooperation, self-reporting violations or self-remediating violations. This occurred in cases involving various matters including material misstatements, recordkeeping violations, fraud and control failures. 

The Division of Enforcement (the Division) protected investors during the year with additional initiatives and actions taken to address noncompliance during the year, including: 

• Recordkeeping – The Division charged various entities with civil penalties for noncompliance with recordkeeping requirements during the year to protect investors. 
• Marketing rule – In 2024, the Division charged investment advisors for advertising misleading performance or theoretical performance without ensuring the information was relevant to the users, using false or unsupported significant statements, testimonials, endorsements or third-party ratings lacking required disclosures. 
• Whistleblower protection – The Division filed various actions for violations of the Dodd-Frank whistleblower protection rule in 2024, including the largest penalty for a whistleblower protection rule violation recorded in history. This rule protects whistleblowers by prohibiting companies from hindering individuals from whistleblowing or retaliating against whistleblowers.