Tesla CEO Elon Musk agreed to pay a $1.5 million fine in a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over allegations that in 2022 he cost Twitter shareholders $150 million by being late to disclose that he was amassing shares in the social network. Musk went on to acquire the company for $44 billion in late 2022 and renamed the service as X.
The SEC sued Musk in January 2025, days before President Donald Trump’s second inauguration. The financial regulator alleged that the billionaire had bought more than 5 percent of Twitter shares without disclosing his position to the public within 10 days, as securities laws required.
By keeping the transactions private until 11 days after he was required to disclose them, Musk saved $150 million on subsequent purchases of Twitter stock, the SEC alleged, by preventing public attention to his actions from triggering an increase in the company’s share price.
When Musk finally disclosed that he had acquired 9 percent of Twitter’s stock, the company’s shares jumped by 27 percent, the SEC said in its complaint.
Musk did not admit to wrongdoing as part of the settlement, which is still subject to court approval.
Musk’s purchases of Twitter stock and later the whole company have triggered a series of legal fights. After becoming its biggest shareholder through regular stock purchases, the billionaire considered taking a seat on its board by then launched a hostile takeover bid.
Musk then struck a deal to buy the company for $44 billion before attempting to pull out. A shareholder lawsuit ultimately forced him to go through with the deal.
The SEC settlement announced Monday comes days after Musk testified in the trial for a lawsuit he brought against two leaders at ChatGPT developer OpenAI, who he alleged broke their commitments to maintain the company they co-founded with Musk as a nonprofit venture.
Legal filings in the case have revealed unflattering private text messages and emails between some of the tech industry’s most powerful figures.
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