Welcome to the Website for the FirstEnergy Fair Fund.
If you purchased or acquired FirstEnergy Corp common stock (the “Security”) between January 1, 2017, and November 19, 2020, inclusive (the “Relevant Period”), and suffered a loss according to the Plan of Distribution, you may be entitled to a Distribution Payment from the FirstEnergy Fair Fund.
Background
On September 12, 2024, the Commission issued an Order Instituting Cease-and Desist Proceedings Pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21C of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Making Findings, and Imposing a Cease-and-Desist Order (the “Order”) against FirstEnergy Corp. (the “Respondent”). In the Order, the Commission found that FirstEnergy participated in a multi-year political corruption scheme. Between 2017 and 2020, FirstEnergy and FirstEnergy Solutions (“FES”) made payments totaling approximately $60 million to Generation Now (“GenNow”) in exchange for specific official action for the benefit of FirstEnergy and FES. GenNow, an Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(4) entity, was controlled by a member of the Ohio House of Representatives who was elected as its speaker in January 2019. FirstEnergy made payments to a 501(c)(4) entity to help conceal the source of the payments. On July 23 and 24, 2020, FirstEnergy violated the antifraud provisions of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act by making misrepresentations about its role in the political corruption scheme to investors in an earnings call and in a filing with the Commission. Additionally, FirstEnergy failed to disclose material related party transactions with respect to payments FirstEnergy made to a 501(c)(4) organization funded and controlled in part by certain former FirstEnergy executives. FirstEnergy also failed to keep accurate books and records and to devise and maintain an adequate system of internal accounting controls with respect to payments to organizations organized under Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code and the identification and disclosure of material related party transactions. As the news of the scope and consequences of the bribery scheme were released, FirstEnergy’s stock price dropped, harming investors who bought shares at inflated prices.
The Commission ordered the Respondent to pay a $100,000,000.00 civil money penalty to the Commission. The Commission also created a Fair Fund, pursuant to Section 308(a) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, so the penalty collected can be distributed to harmed investors (the “Fair Fund”).
The Respondent has paid in full. The Fair Fund has been deposited in a Commission-designated account at the United States Department of the Treasury (“U.S. Treasury”), and any accrued interest will be added to the Fair Fund.
Please read the Plan Notice to fully understand your rights and options.