Elon Musk is being sued by a US watchdog for alleged failings during his $44bn (£36bn) takeover of Twitter, with the billionaire accused of harming investors by acquiring shares at “artificially low prices”.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is chaired by Joe Biden-appointee Gary Gensler, has re-ignited a long-running feud by launching a fresh lawsuit against the Tesla boss.
In a claim lodged on Tuesday, the SEC alleged Mr Musk failed to disclose his purchase of Twitter shares in a timely manner, allowing him to make savings of $150m.
The legal row has emerged just days before the inauguration of Donald Trump, who recently appointed Mr Musk to lead the newly created department of government efficiency.
Mr Gensler – who has previously drawn criticism from Mr Musk – is preparing to step down as SEC chairman this month, launching the lawsuit as one of his final acts.
Under SEC rules, US investors are required to disclose when they own more than 5pc of a public company within 10 calendar days.
The SEC claims Mr Musk was 11 days late when confirming his 9pc position in Twitter, now known as X, which led to shares in the social media site climbing by 27pc.
The billionaire subsequently launched a takeover bid for the business in April 2022 before sealing a $44bn deal seven months later.
The SEC claimed Twitter investors who sold stock without knowledge of Mr Musk’s true stake had “suffered substantial economic harm”.
However, Mr Musk has since hit back at the SEC in a post on social media, describing it as a “totally broken organisation”.
He said: “They spend their time on s— like this when there are so many actual crimes that go unpunished.”
Alex Spiro, Mr Musk’s lawyer, also said the billionaire had “done nothing wrong” and accused the regulator of a “multiyear campaign of harassment”.
Mr Musk’s feud with the regulator predates Mr Gensler’s term.
He previously clashed with the watchdog in 2018 when he claimed he had “funding secured” for a private takeover of Tesla.
The regulator accused him of fraud, later settling the case after Mr Musk agreed to pay a $20m fine and give up his chairmanship of Tesla.
The SEC has also been a bugbear of many of Mr Musk’s allies in Silicon Valley, who have accused it of unfairly targeting the cryptocurrency industry with legal claims and investigations.
