Elon Musk has settled a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit accusing him of delaying disclosures about his Twitter stake before acquiring the platform in 2022. A trust in Musk's name will pay a $1.5 million civil penalty, though Musk did not admit wrongdoing and will not forfeit any alleged savings from the delay. The settlement, disclosed on May 4, 2026, still requires judicial approval.
The SEC initially alleged that Musk's 11-day delay in revealing his 5% stake in Twitter allowed him to buy more than $500 million in shares at artificially low prices. The regulator sought a fine and repayment of $150 million Musk allegedly saved, but the settlement did not include such restitution. Musk's attorney, Alex Spiro, called the outcome a vindication, stating that Musk was 'cleared of all issues related to the late filing of forms.'
The SEC first sued Musk in January 2025, following a prior 2018 settlement involving Tesla. Musk has had a contentious history with the regulator, including a 2018 case over misleading tweets about taking Tesla private. He settled that case by paying a $20 million fine and agreeing to pre-approval of certain tweets. Musk completed his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter in October 2022, later renaming it X and merging it with his AI company, xAI, and SpaceX.
The settlement follows a separate class-action trial where a jury found Musk misled Twitter investors during the buyout. Musk's legal team plans to appeal that verdict. The SEC declined to comment on the latest settlement.