A U.S. federal jury has found Elon Musk liable for misleading investors during his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter, ruling that his public statements influenced the company’s share price and caused investor losses.
The verdict, delivered in San Francisco after a multi-week civil trial, concluded that Musk’s 2022 posts particularly claims that the deal was “temporarily on hold” and concerns over fake or spam accounts were materially misleading and contributed to a decline in Twitter’s stock value.
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The case stemmed from a class-action lawsuit filed by shareholders who argued that Musk used his public platform to depress the stock price as leverage to renegotiate or potentially exit the acquisition.
Jurors agreed that his statements had a direct market impact, though they stopped short of finding that he orchestrated a broader, deliberate fraud scheme.
Evidence presented during the trial focused on Musk’s repeated criticism of Twitter’s reported bot numbers, which investors claimed created uncertainty and triggered sell-offs.
Some shareholders sold their holdings below the agreed purchase price of $54.20 per share, locking in losses during the volatility period between April and October 2022.
While liability was established on key claims, the jury rejected others, including allegations tied to certain public remarks classified as opinion rather than factual misrepresentation.
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Financial penalties have not been fully finalized, but damages are expected to reach several billion dollars, with estimates ranging around $2.5 billion to $2.6 billion. Musk’s legal team has indicated plans to appeal the decision, describing the ruling as temporary and contestable.
Source: Nairametrics
