Elon Musk is seeking to dismiss a lawsuit filed by former Twitter shareholders who claim it delayed disclosing its significant stake in the social media company until early 2022.
Musk maintains that “all indications” suggest any delays were unintentional.
In a recent filing in Manhattan federal court, Musk dismissed the idea that he intended to mislead shareholders who were unaware of his 9.2% stake in Twitter, leading them to miss out on significant gains when they sold their shares, Reuters reports.
Investors allege that Musk and his wealth manager, Jared Birchall, were aware of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule requiring disclosure by March 24, 2022, after Musk acquired 5% of Twitter.
Read also: Tesla Model Y appears on Chinese government’s procurement list for Elon Musk’s company for the first time
They claim he waited 11 more days, allowing him to buy more shares at lower prices, saving more than $200 million. Twitter shares rose 27% on April 4, 2022, following Musk’s announcement of his 9.2% stake.
Musk said in his filing that he had initially planned to disclose his stake in Twitter in late 2022, but did so quickly after realizing he had misunderstood the SEC rule. “This is not a scheme to defraud,” Musk said.
He also denied allegations that a Morgan Stanley The banker helped him develop a strategy to secretly accumulate Twitter shares.
The investors, led by an Oklahoma public pension fund, have not commented on Musk’s latest filing.
Musk acquired Twitter, now known as X, for $44 billion in October 2022. The SEC is also investigating his purchases of Twitter stock.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of artificial intelligence tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Read next:
Photo via Shutterstock
Market news and data provided by Benzinga APIs
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
