Who Should File a Report?
If you have information about a financial institution regulated by the Federal Reserve that you believe has violated federal or state laws, violated a regulation, or engaged in other wrongdoing, we encourage you to contact us.
If you are a consumer having a problem with your financial institution, or if you do not meet the above criteria but have information you wish to report, please see the sidebar for links to other departments and agencies that may be the appropriate place for you to file a report.
What Should I Report?
Examples of activity that should be reported include:
- A financial institution is violating the law.
- A financial institution is failing to comply with legal requirements, for instance, failing to report cash transactions in excess of $10,000 as required by law.
- An employee is embezzling money from a financial institution or engaging in other fraud against the institution.
- A financial institution's director or officer is breaching a fiduciary duty, for example, by failing to act with care or in good faith or failing to disclose a material personal benefit.
Is This Anonymous?
You may choose to remain anonymous, though we ask that you provide as much information as possible to help us in any investigation.
If you choose to provide your name and personal contact information, the Federal Reserve will protect your identity as confidential. Your identity and information generally will not be disclosed, including in response to Freedom of Information Act requests. There are, however, certain circumstances where the information could be disclosed, including in a referral to or in response to requests from other federal or state financial institution supervisory agencies, other law enforcement agencies, in response to federal or state grand jury, criminal trial, or government administrative subpoenas, a court order, or other legal process.
Am I Protected from Retaliation?
The Federal Reserve takes seriously claims of retaliation against whistleblowers and encourages any claim of retaliation to be reported to us.
If you are an employee of a depository institution, your employer cannot retaliate against you for reporting to us a possible violation of any law or regulation. A bank that does so may be sued by the whistleblower employee in federal court and the court may require the bank to reinstate the employee, pay compensatory damages, or take other actions to remedy any past discrimination. (12 U.S.C. § 1831j)
Am I Eligible for a Monetary Reward?
The Federal Reserve is authorized to provide monetary incentives to individuals who come forward to report possible violations of certain federal banking laws. In appropriate circumstances and with the concurrence of the U.S. Attorney General, the Federal Reserve is authorized to award up to $100,000 for original information about a financial institution's illegal activity that results in monetary sanctions collected by the Federal Reserve or by certain other regulatory or law enforcement agencies. (12 U.S.C. § 1831k)
How Do I File a Whistleblower Report?
You can choose to file by phone, email, or mail:
Phone
1-800-337-0429
Email
[email protected] or the Contact Us form
Mail
Office of the Ombuds
Federal Reserve Board
20th & C Streets, NW
OSEC Ombuds Office, M-4775
Washington, D.C. 20551
Other things to know about submitting a whistleblower report:
- All of our investigations are confidential. This means we cannot confirm or deny the existence of an investigation or give you updates on the status of your report. If we have questions about the information you have provided, and you have given us your contact information, we will contact you.
- The more specific your report is, the better. For example, it is helpful if you can identify any individuals involved in the activity, any documents or materials that may support the possible violation, and examples of particular misconduct.
- A whistleblower need not be a company insider. A whistleblower can be anyone with information about potential wrongdoing.