US financial regulators have filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk following the billionaire’s declaration that he will no longer cooperate with their investigation into his acquisition of Twitter, now known as X.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) petitioned a federal court to compel him to attend a third testimony session regarding the transaction.
The decision to file a lawsuit followed the receipt of a letter from Mr. Musk’s attorney stating that he refused to appear as requested.
There was an accusation of “harassment” against the SEC.
“Government action that is unchecked is hazardous, and the record here is troubling.” Attorney Alex Spiro wrote, “Mr. Musk refuses to acquiesce in the Commission’s incursions and therefore refuses to appear as you demand.”
The most recent dispute between the SEC and Mr. Musk, who previously stated on national television that he had “no respect” for the regulator, is the lawsuit.
Last year, the SEC investigated Mr. Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of X.
According to the filing in federal court in San Francisco, the agency is investigating whether his 2022 stock purchases before his outright acquisition of the company and his statements regarding those investments violated securities laws.
After being subpoenaed, Mr. Musk participated in two half-days of testimony via video conference in July, according to the SEC. The agency stated that a second session was required because nearly half of the case-related documents it received were received after those meetings.
In a letter to the agency, Elon’s counsel expressed dissatisfaction with the agency’s “unclear reason for further time diverting Mr. Musk from his significant obligations to companies and shareholders…Enough is enough.”
Mr. Musk and the SEC have earlier engaged in conflict.
By claiming in a tweet that he had “funding secured” to take Tesla, the electric car company he leads, private, he was charged in 2018 with defrauding investors.
Subsequently, he settled with the allegations, relinquishing his position as chairman of the firm’s board and consenting to what was termed a “Twitter sitter”—restrictions on his social media posts concerning the business.
Elon has repeatedly petitioned the court to remove these restrictions, most recently in February.
Separately, this week, a judge in New York ruled that former Twitter investors must file a lawsuit against Mr. Musk, alleging that he defrauded former shareholders by failing to promptly disclose his share purchases. However, a claim of insider trading was dismissed.
SOURCE – (BBC)
