From PC Mag: Elon Musk must pay a $20 million fine and step down as chairman of Tesla's board to settle securities fraud charges brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission last week. He will remain as the car maker's CEO.
Tesla will also pay an additional $20 million fee; the $40 million total will be distributed to harmed investors, the SEC said Saturday. Neither Musk nor Tesla are admitting any wrongdoing.
At issue is an Aug. 7 tweet from Musk that said he was "considering taking Tesla private at $420" and asserted that he'd secured funding for the move. "Shareholders could either to sell at 420 or hold shares & go private," he wrote in a follow-up tweet.
According to the SEC, however, "Musk knew that the potential transaction was uncertain and subject to numerous contingencies. Musk had not discussed specific deal terms, including price, with any potential financing partners, and his statements about the possible transaction lacked an adequate basis in fact."
The tweet caused Tesla's stock price to jump by over 6 percent that day "and led to significant market disruption," the agency says.
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