Rajiv Jain-led GQG Partners has settled charges of alleged violations of whistle-blower rules brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by paying a "penalty" of $500,000.

The US regulatory body said in a statement that it has settled charges against the Florida-based GQG Partners LLC, "for entering into agreements with candidates for employment and a former employee that made it more difficult for them to report potential securities law violations to the SEC .

"Without admitting or denying the SEC s findings, GQG agreed to be censured, to cease and desist from violating the whistle-blower protection rule, and to pay a $500,000 civil penalty," it added.

The SEC's order had said that from November 2020 through September 2023, GQG entered into non-disclosure agreements with 12 candidates for employment that prohibited them from disclosing confidential information about the boutique investment firm, including to government agencies.

While the agreements permitted the candidates to respond to requests for information from the Commission, it required notification to GQG of any such request and prohibited responding to requests arising from a candidate s voluntary disclosure.

SEC added that its order found that GQG also entered into a settlement agreement with a former employee whose counsel had told the firm that he or she intended to report alleged securities law violations to the Commission. Specifically, the settlement agreement said it permitted reporting possible securities law violations to government agencies, including the Commission.

However, it also required the former employee to affirm that the individual had not done so; was not aware of facts that would support an investigation; and would withdraw any statements already made that might support an investigation.

According to the SEC, these provisions violated the whistleblower protection rule. According to the SEC, its order found that GQG violated whistleblower protection rule 21F-17(a), which prohibits any action to impede an individual from communicating directly with the SEC staff about a possible securities law violation.