Elon Musk and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are in settlement discussions over a lawsuit accusing the world’s richest person of waiting too long to disclose his early purchases of Twitter stock in 2022. A resolution, if reached, would close one of the most high-profile and contentious regulatory fights in recent years.
Both sides confirmed in a court filing this week that they are actively exploring a potential resolution that could make further legal proceedings unnecessary. They jointly asked a federal judge in Washington to push back a procedural deadline by two weeks to allow those discussions to continue. The SEC declined to comment publicly on the matter.
What the lawsuit is about
The SEC filed suit in January 2025, alleging that Musk waited 11 days beyond the legal deadline to disclose that he had acquired an initial stake of more than 5 percent in Twitter in late March and early April of 2022. Regulators argued that the delay allowed him to continue purchasing shares at prices that had not yet reflected his growing position in the company, enabling him to buy more than $500 million worth of stock at what the agency described as artificially low prices.
The SEC has sought a civil fine from Musk and the return of roughly $150 million it claims he saved at the expense of investors who sold their shares without knowing a major buyer was quietly accumulating a position. Musk has maintained that the delay was unintentional and has accused the agency of targeting him in violation of his constitutional rights.
The settlement discussions come roughly six weeks after a federal judge rejected Musk’s effort to have the case thrown out entirely. They also come as the SEC operates under new leadership following a shift in the agency’s enforcement priorities.
A pattern of regulatory friction
This would not be the first time Musk has resolved a dispute with the SEC through a settlement. In 2018, the agency charged him with securities fraud after he posted on Twitter that he had secured funding to take Tesla private, a claim that turned out to be premature. That case ended with Musk paying a $20 million civil penalty, agreeing to step down as Tesla’s chairman and accepting oversight of certain social media communications by company lawyers.
The relationship between Musk and the SEC has remained tense in the years since, making the current settlement talks all the more notable.
The broader Musk legal picture
A separate legal matter involving Twitter is also moving through the courts. A jury in San Francisco recently heard closing arguments in a case brought by former Twitter shareholders who allege that Musk misled them during his on-again, off-again attempt to walk away from the $44 billion acquisition. Musk argued at the time that the platform had more fake accounts than it had disclosed, which he used as justification for trying to exit the deal.
Twitter, which Musk eventually completed the purchase of and rebranded as X, is now part of a rapidly expanding corporate empire. Last month, X was folded into SpaceX following that company’s acquisition of Musk’s artificial intelligence venture xAI. The combined entity has been valued at approximately $1.25 trillion, making it the most valuable private company in the world. SpaceX is reported to be considering an initial public offering as early as this June.
Musk’s personal fortune stood at roughly $834 billion as of this week, a figure that represents more than triple the wealth of the second-richest person on that ranking.
