Elon Musk Is Under Federal Investigation for 'His Conduct' in $44 Billion Twitter Deal

Mar. 15, 2025

Elon Musk.Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty

In a Delaware court filing dated Oct. 6, Twitter asked to see communications betweenthe Tesla founder, 51, and federal agents. The papers were unsealed Thursday, according to Bloomberg.

They added, “Through counsel, he has exchanged substantive correspondence with those authorities concerning their investigations. Twitter wants those documents, because they bear upon key issues in this litigation.”

Twitter added that it had beenasking for the correspondencefor months to no avail and now wants a judge to intervene, Reuters reported.

Last month, Musks' legal team issued a “privilege log” of papers to be withheld in discovery. It included email drafts to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as well as a presentation to the Federal Trade Commission, Twitter alleged, per Reuters. “This game of ‘hide the ball’ must end,” the filing reportedly said.

Also on Oct. 6, the judge stopped proceedings that would let the company and Musk finalize their deal, the outlet said.

The SEC also questioned why he intended to be a passive shareholder, according to Reuters. He then reportedly refiled as an active investor.

The investigation into Musk marks the latest in a months-long back-and-forth between the company and the billionaire businessman, who announced his plans toback out of his agreementto buy Twitter back in July.

The announcement came after Musk sent a letter to Twitter, according toBloombergandThe New York Times. The outlets reported that in the letter, he proposed to acquire the platform at the original price he agreed to pay for the company in April: $44 billion at $54.20 per share.

According to a source familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported that Musk made the move after his legal team sensed he would lose if the case ultimately went to trial.

Elon Musk.Pascal Le Segretain/Getty

Twitterlaunched the lawsuitagainst Musk, hoping to “compel” him to follow through with the acquisition.

RELATED VIDEO: Elon Musk Responds to Twitter’s Plan to Sue Him Over Terminated Deal to Buy Social Media Platform

“In April 2022, Elon Musk entered into a binding merger agreement with Twitter, promising to use his best efforts to get the deal done,” Twitter said in the complaint, filed in the Delaware Court of Chancery in July. “Now, less than three months later, Musk refuses to honor his obligations to Twitter and its stockholders because the deal he signed no longer serves his personal interests,” it continued.

“Having mounted a public spectacle to put Twitter in play, and having proposed and then signed a seller-friendly merger agreement, Musk apparently believes that he — unlike every other party subject to Delaware contract law — is free to change his mind, trash the company, disrupt its operations, destroy stockholder value, and walk away,” the company claimed.

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Days before the lawsuit was launched, Musk ended his deal to buy the company, alleging that Twitter was in “breach of multiple provisions” of an original agreement.

Musk claimed that Twitter did not provide enough information about the number of fake accounts and bots on its network and didn’t give his team sufficient data to do their own investigation. These allegations, which Twitter denied, were reiterated in Musk’scountersuit.

source: people.com