Elon Musk has announced that he has received a “settlement request” from the SEC, led by Gary Gensler, in connection with his Twitter takeover. This is the latest installment in a long-running public battle between the billionaire Tesla CEO and the SEC.
On Thursday, Musk posted a letter from his attorney Alex Spiro to Gensler, stating that the billionaire “will have 48 hours to accept payment or be indicted on various charges. '', he said.
“Oh Gary, how could you do this to me?” Musk wrote on the X Post. It contained a copy of the letter.
In his letter, Spiro said the request related to “certain purchases, sales, and disclosures of Twitter stock” and was the latest in what he called “more than six years of committee harassment against Mr. Musk.” He said it was a sign. Spiro also revealed that the SEC has “reopened” its investigation into Musk's brainchip startup Neuralink.
The SEC sent Musk a settlement offer on Tuesday, but extended the deadline until Monday after requesting more time, a person familiar with the situation told Reuters.
If the two sides cannot reach an agreement, the authorities may issue a “Wells Notice” in advance of potential enforcement action. CNBC reportedThis was reported by a person familiar with the situation.
Spiro suggested that the SEC's recent actions against Musk may be politically motivated. The attorney also said he declined requests to testify about the situation.
“We demand to know who directed these actions: you or the White House,” Spiro said in a letter to Gensler.
In another post, Musk shared an AI-generated photo depicting Gensler as a snail-like creature wearing a suit.
“I asked @Grok to draw @GaryGensler. I think it's very flattering!” Musk wrote.
Musk also targeted the SEC in another post, writing that it was “just another weaponized agency doing political dirty work.”
“It is the SEC's policy to conduct investigations in a confidential manner to maintain the integrity of the investigative process,” an agency spokesperson said in a statement. “Accordingly, the SEC does not comment on the possibility of an investigation.”
The SEC is investigating Musk over his actions during his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter (later renamed X) in 2022.
Musk announced in April 2022 that he had purchased a 9% stake in Twitter.
The move drew scrutiny from the SEC, which questioned why he didn't disclose the acquisition within 10 days of exceeding the legally required 5% ownership threshold.
The SEC also cracked down on Musk in 2018 over an infamous episode in which he claimed he had “secured funding” to take Tesla private at $420 per share.
That deal never materialized.
Musk ultimately agreed to a settlement that required him and Tesla to each pay a $20 million fine and step down as chairman.
The billionaire also entered into a consent decree requiring tweets and other public communications to be pre-approved by company lawyers.
After years of clashes with federal regulators under the Biden administration, Musk emerged as a major donor adviser to President-elect Trump during the 2024 election cycle.
President Trump has named Musk and ally Vivek Ramaswamy to co-lead the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is tasked with cutting the federal budget and unnecessary regulations.
Investors are taking Musk's close relationship with Trump as a bullish sign for his various businesses. Musk's personal net worth exceeded $400 billion, the highest amount ever.
Gensler, who has regularly clashed with the tech industry over his tough crackdown on cryptocurrencies, said he would step down as SEC chairman following Trump's election victory.
President Trump has nominated Paul Atkins, a staunch ally in the crypto sector, to replace Gensler.
with post wire
