WASHINGTON: Billionaire Elon Musk is being probed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission over his purchase of social media giant Twitter last year, according to a court filing made on Thursday.

The regulator has sought a court order directing Musk to comply with a subpoena to appear for testimony, it said.

According to the filing, Musk failed to appear for testimony as required, despite agreeing to it at one point.

The investigation concerns whether Musk broke the securities law in connection with his purchases of Twitter stock, as well as statements and SEC filings he made in relation to the deal.

Musk acquired Twitter last year after initially building a large minority stake in the social media platform, which he allegedly failed to disclose in a timely manner. “The SEC has already taken Mr Musk’s testimony multiple times in this misguided investigation — enough is enough,” said a statement from Alex Spiro, an attorney for Musk.

Published in Dawn, October 6th, 2023