The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is investigating Tesla Inc Chief Executive Elon Musk’s original 9 percent share purchase in Twitter Inc, according to The Information.
According to the report https://www.theinformation.com/articles/elon-musks-early-twitter-purchase-under-ftc-scrutiny, the FTC is investigating whether Musk complied with an antitrust reporting obligation when he bought his stock in the social media business in early April.
Companies that fail to register substantial stock transactions or other acquisitions can be penalized up to $43,792 per day if they do not follow the requirements.
Musk, the world’s richest man, proposed to buy the firm for $54.20 per share in cash after the initial stock acquisition, which Twitter accepted earlier this week. Musk’s planned purchase of Twitter is unlikely to be blocked by antitrust regulators.
According to the report, the FTC is looking into whether Musk bought the stock to exert influence over Twitter’s management or if he appeared to be a passive stakeholder.
Musk described his investment in Tesla as “passive” in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 4.
The FTC declined to comment, and Twitter stated it had no comment on the allegation.
