Elon Musk, chief executive officer of Tesla Inc., at the House Republican conference meeting in Washington, DC, US, on Nov. 13, 2024.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk, alleging he failed to properly disclose his Twitter stock ownership before acquiring the social media platform in early 2022.

This omission, the SEC claims, allowed Musk to purchase shares at a lower price, resulting in savings of at least $150 million. Musk completed the Twitter acquisition in October 2022 and subsequently renamed it X.

Musk began accumulating Twitter shares early in 2022, exceeding the 5% ownership threshold by March. The complaint states that this triggered a legal obligation to disclose his holdings, a requirement he allegedly disregarded until April 4—eleven days past the deadline.

X and Musk’s representatives have not yet responded to requests for comment.

Following the agreement to buy Twitter, Musk attempted to withdraw from the deal, prompting a lawsuit from Twitter to enforce the acquisition.

The SEC initiated an investigation in April 2022 to determine if Musk’s Twitter stock purchases, statements, and SEC filings violated securities laws.

Prior to filing the lawsuit, the SEC pursued legal action to compel Musk’s testimony as part of its investigation into his Twitter acquisition.

With SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s planned departure on January 20, the future of the lawsuit under a new administration remains uncertain.