Daijiworld Media Network – San Francisco

San Francisco, Mar 21: A federal jury in San Francisco has found Elon Musk liable for misleading investors of Twitter (now X) during his 2022 acquisition bid, according to a report.

The jury concluded that Musk misled shareholders through certain public statements, including tweets suggesting the $44 billion deal was “temporarily on hold,” while he was attempting to renegotiate the purchase price. However, jurors did not find evidence that he engaged in a deliberate scheme to defraud investors.

The case centred on whether Musk’s tweets and remarks made during a podcast in May 2022 amounted to securities fraud. After three days of deliberations, the nine-member jury determined that two of his tweets misled investors who traded shares based on those statements, while his podcast comments did not constitute fraud.

The verdict follows a trial that began on March 2 and lasted nearly three weeks. While the exact damages in the class-action lawsuit are yet to be finalised, they are expected to run into billions of dollars. Jurors reportedly awarded shareholders compensation ranging from about $3 to $8 per share per day.

A major focus of the case was Musk’s claims regarding fake and spam accounts on the platform. He had argued that the number of bots was significantly higher than the roughly 5 per cent disclosed in regulatory filings, citing this as a reason to reconsider the deal.

After attempting to withdraw from the acquisition, Twitter filed a lawsuit in Delaware seeking to enforce the agreement. Musk later reversed his decision and proceeded with the acquisition on the original terms.

The ruling marks a significant legal development in one of the most closely watched corporate disputes involving a major social media platform.