Trump SEC Proposes $1.5 Million Settlement for Musk in $150 Million Twitter Disclosure Case

The Securities and Exchange Commission under the Trump administration has proposed a settlement that would allow Elon Musk to resolve a lawsuit seeking at least $150 million in disgorgement for failing to timely disclose his 2022 Twitter stake—for just $1.5 million. The dramatic reduction, if approved by a federal court, would require a trust in Musk's name to pay the civil penalty to the government.

The January 2025 lawsuit, filed in the final days of the Biden administration, centers on Musk's acquisition of a 9 percent stake in Twitter without the required 10-day disclosure window under US securities law. The SEC alleged that Musk's delayed reporting allowed him to continue purchasing shares at artificially depressed prices, resulting in an underpayment of at least $150 million for shares acquired after his beneficial ownership report came due. Twitter's stock price surged after Musk's belated disclosure, and he subsequently purchased the company outright later that year.

The proposed settlement signals a stark shift in the SEC's approach to high-profile enforcement actions involving Musk. The Biden-era complaint had demanded disgorgement of Musk's unjust enrichment tied to the disclosure failure. The outcome of this settlement request, now pending judicial approval, could set precedent for how aggressively the commission pursues similar violations by major corporate actors.