Home / Business and Economy / Musk Settles SEC Lawsuit Over Twitter Stake
Musk Settles SEC Lawsuit Over Twitter Stake
19 Mar
Summary
- SEC lawsuit alleged Musk failed to disclose Twitter stake on time.
- Delayed disclosure allowed Musk to buy shares at lower prices.
- Parties are discussing a settlement to resolve the case.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is actively engaged in settlement discussions with Elon Musk to resolve a lawsuit related to his takeover of Twitter. The case, initiated in 2025, centers on Musk's alleged failure to disclose his ownership of over 5% of Twitter's stock within the mandated 10-day period, a deadline he reportedly missed by 11 days.
This delay, according to the SEC, enabled Musk to acquire more than $500 million in shares at prices considered artificially low, thereby disadvantaging other investors. The SEC had been seeking $150 million in penalties, an amount allegedly equivalent to the savings Musk gained from the late disclosure on April 4, 2022, instead of March 24, 2022.
As of 2026-03-19T01:00:32+00:00, both the SEC and Musk have notified a Washington D.C. court about their ongoing negotiations, requesting a two-week extension for settlement talks. This suggests that further legal proceedings might be avoided if an agreement is reached.
This is not the first encounter between Musk and the SEC; a previous case in 2018 resulted in Musk and Tesla each paying $20 million in penalties. Twitter, now operating as X under xAI and ultimately SpaceX ownership, was delisted as a public company. There is speculation that SpaceX might consider an IPO for X/Twitter in the future.
