Elon Musk has settled a civil lawsuit filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that accused the world's richest person of waiting too long in 2022 to disclose his initial purchases of Twitter, now known as X.
Settlement Details
A trust in Musk's name will pay a US$1.5-million civil penalty, without admitting wrongdoing. Musk will not have to give up any money he allegedly saved from the delay. The settlement was disclosed on Monday in the Washington, D.C., federal court.
SEC Allegations
In its January 2025 lawsuit, the SEC said Musk's 11-day delay in revealing his initial 5 per cent Twitter stake in late March and early April 2022 let him buy more than US$500-million of shares at artificially low prices. The SEC had argued that Musk should pay a civil fine and repay the US$150-million he allegedly saved at the expense of unsuspecting investors.
Musk's Defense
Musk called the delay inadvertent and accused the SEC of violating his free speech rights by targeting him. He completed the US$44-billion Twitter purchase in October 2022.
More to come.
