SEC Case Over Musk’s Twitter Stake Disclosure<\/p>\n
The settlement, filed Monday in federal court in Washington, resolves allegations that Musk waited 11 days too long in 2022 to disclose that he had surpassed the 5% ownership threshold in Twitter, Reuters reported.<\/p>\n
The SEC argued the delay allowed Musk to continue buying shares at artificially low prices before publicly revealing his growing stake, ultimately saving him roughly $150 million.<\/p>\n
Musk did not admit wrongdoing as part of the agreement and the settlement still requires judicial approval.<\/p>\n
SEC did not immediately respond to Benzinga\u2019s request for comments.<\/p>\n
Musk’s Legal Team Declares Victory<\/p>\n
Attorney Alex Spiro said Musk had been “cleared,” maintaining that the delayed filing was inadvertent rather than deceptive.<\/p>\n
The SEC had originally sought both financial penalties and repayment of Musk’s alleged savings.<\/p>\n
Instead, the final agreement imposes what legal experts describe as a relatively modest fine compared with Musk’s wealth. The tech mogul currently has a net worth of $789.9 billion, according<\/a> to Forbes.<\/p>\n SEC Battle Continues To Shape Musk’s Regulatory History<\/p>\n The case adds to Musk’s turbulent history with the SEC, which began with the 2018 “funding secured” settlement<\/a> tied to Tesla.<\/p>\n Amanda Fischer, former chief of staff to Gary Gensler, criticized the agreement as “embarrassing.”<\/p>\n She said it could raise concerns about whether the regulator is adequately protecting ordinary investors over politically connected insiders.<\/p>\n Separate Shareholder Litigation Remains<\/p>\n The SEC settlement does not affect Musk’s ongoing legal challenges<\/a> tied to shareholder claims over his Twitter acquisition strategy.<\/p>\n Musk completed his $44 billion Twitter takeover<\/a> in October 2022, later rebranding the platform as X.<\/p>\n Disclaimer:\u00a0This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.<\/p>\n Photo courtesy: Frederic Legrand \u2013 COMEO from Shutterstock<\/p>\n