Donald Trump is suing the two co-founders of his newly public Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), claiming that the company was improperly formed and has no right to their shares. I woke you up.
of lawsuit A lawsuit filed in Florida state court late last month alleges Andy Liczynski and Wes Moss, former stars of President Trump’s NBC reality show “The Apprentice,” violated their agreement to form TMTG, and that 8.6 They claim that they do not deserve the % stake.
According to , their stake is currently valued at a total of $606 million. bloomberg.
The pair also made a series of costly mistakes that “caused TMTG to suffer significant harm and the merger partner’s stock price to decline,” according to the complaint.
After making a splashy stock market debut under its former president’s initials, “DJT,” TMTG’s stock price soared to more than $70 and closed at about $66 per share on March 27. But so far this week, prices have fallen sharply, with the company closing at $51.60 on the 22nd. Tuesday.
President Trump blamed Moss and Liczynski for the company’s losses in court, saying they had “failed spectacularly at every turn,” including “failing to establish corporate governance,” and then proceeded to build a SPAC. “We have launched a continuous effort to stop them,” he said. engage in struggle for their respective interests.
“This was an extraordinary opportunity for Mr. Moss and Mr. Liczynski,” the complaint said, adding that both men “were at the mercy of President Trump.”
Shares soared on Monday after TMTG disclosed in a securities filing that it suffered a loss of $58 million in 2023 and needed funds from President Trump’s blank check company to stay in business. It fell 21%. The performance fueled skepticism about the roller-coaster IPO. The launch led experts to call it another “meme stock” like AMC or GameStop.
Mr. Trump’s net worth rose and fell along with TMTG’s stock price, which ultimately fell and the Republican nominee’s wealth soared 14% to $6.4 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Trump owns 57% of the company, and his stake is currently worth $4.02 billion on paper, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings obtained by Bloomberg.
Trump’s lawsuit comes after Trump allegedly pitched the idea for a copycat Twitter platform called Truth Social in early 2021 after losing his bid for the White House and being banned from the social media site as it is now known. It’s just the latest in a legal battle between Mr. Moss and Mr. Liczynski. As X after the Capitol riot.
Mr. Liczynski and Mr. Moss filed a lawsuit against the former president in Delaware Chancery Court over promised shares in the social media company.
Despite the recession, TMTG’s market capitalization is currently around $6.4 billion.
Trump is unable to sell his 57% stake in the company due to a six-month lockup related to a civil fraud case in New York.
Bloomberg reports that Delaware Judge Sam Glascock III has refused to expedite Liczynski and Moss’ case after Trump’s lawyers agreed to avoid a reduction in the value of their stock. did.
But at Monday’s hearing, the two asked a judge to issue an order barring any further Florida lawsuits from proceeding while they litigate claims that President Trump intended to target their stocks all along. He said he would ask for it.
Mr. Glasscock told the court he was “appalled” to learn of Mr. Trump’s Florida lawsuit and filed suit instead of filing a counterclaim against the two in Mr. Glasscock’s court, Bloomberg reported. As a result, he is considering possible sanctions against the former president in the Delaware case.
The newspaper reached out to Trump, Liczynski and Moss for comment.
