The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether the latest sales of shares from Tesla Manager Elon Musk and his brother Kimball Musk “violated insider trading rules.” Wall Street Journal announced on Thursday, quoting acquaintances.
The investigation began last year after Kimbal, a member of Tesla’s board, sold $ 108 million worth of shares to the electric car maker.
That happened the day before Musk voted Twitter consumers are asking if they need to unload 10% of their stake in Tesla.
US market regulators are investigating whether Tesla boss Elon Musk and his brother violated insider trading rules last year
Tesla’s share price plummeted after Elon Musk posted a poll on Twitter asking if he should sell 10% of his stake in the company
Kimball Musk did not know about the Twitter poll before it, Elon Musk told Financial Times in an email, adding that his lawyers were “familiar” with the survey.
Tesla shares fell sharply after Musk’s Twitter poll.
An earlier agreement with the SEC required its public statements on the company’s finances and other topics to be reviewed by the federal financial regulator’s legal council.
The SEC issued a summons on November 16, ten days after the Musk poll, seeking information related to some financial data.
The investigation is investigating whether Elon Musk told his brother that he would post the tweet and whether Kimbal Musk then traded, the Journal writes.
The records say Kimball donated 25,000 shares to charity in addition to selling 88,500 shares. After the sale, he still owned 511,240 shares.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has launched its investigation after Kimball Musk, pictured, sold $ 108 million worth of shares in Tesla last year
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk hugged his brother Kimball Musk during an event in Florida in May 2020.
Employees and managers of a listed company usually do not have to buy or sell securities when they are aware of information that has not yet been made public.
The potential investigation will escalate Musk’s battle with regulators as they scrutinize his social media posts and Tesla’s treatment of workers, including allegations of discrimination.
The world’s richest man is already in open conflict with the SEC over a 2018 tweet in which he said he had the appropriate funding to pull Tesla off the stock market without providing evidence.
His Twitter presence often makes the CEO joke, supplemented by subtle references to marijuana.
One of his most memorable tweets came in August 2018, when he said he was “considering taking Tesla privately for $ 420. Funding provided. ”
This led to criticism for his impulsive use of Twitter, and he was accused of fraud by the SEC to mislead investors. Musk and Tesla were fined $ 20 million each.
The number 420 is a cannabis culture slang for marijuana use.
Elon Musk’s Twitter presence often makes the CEO often joking, supplemented by subtle references to marijuana and drug abuse
Musk and Tesla agreed to pay $ 20 million each as part of an agreement that also imposed strict rules on its use on social media, requiring prior approval from Tesla’s adviser for statements with key financial information.
A Tesla lawyer resumed the fight for the agreement by sending a letter to a judge last week, accusing the SEC of harassing him and Tesla with “endless” and “relentless” investigations to punish him for being an outspoken critic of the government.
The letter also accused the SEC of delaying the distribution of $ 40 million to investors, while interfering with Musk’s use of social media.
Elon Musk’s stock sales in November were automatically in line with a trading plan he created on September 14, according to a document disclosing stock sales, including stock options that were due to expire in 2022.
Tesla shares have fallen about 33 percent since Musk began selling billions of dollars in shares on Nov. 8, days after a poll in which 58 percent of voters asked him to sell.
Tesla and Kimball Musk did not comment on the report. The SEC declined to comment.
Shares of Tesla fell for the fifth day in a row on Thursday morning to $ 700 per share, its lowest estimate since August, amid a sell-off on the world market caused by fears about the Russian occupation, which began early Thursday. It has since recovered to $ 768 a share on Thursday afternoon and has continued to move around the mark.
One billionaire and two millionaires are not bad for a mother of three. In fact, the successful children of Mother May Musk – Elon, Kimball and Tosca, who are not in the picture, all start companies and are leaders in their chosen activities: technology, restaurants and entertainment