Investors in Dogecoin Lawsuit Accuse Elon Musk of Insider Trading

() — Investors proposing a class action lawsuit accused Tesla CEO Elon Musk of insider trading and manipulation of the Dogecoin cryptocurrency, costing them billions of dollars.

In a filing Wednesday night in Manhattan federal court, investors said Musk used Twitter posts, paid online influencers, his 2021 appearance on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” and other “publicity stunts.” “to profitably trade at his expense through various Dogecoin wallets that he or Tesla controlled.

Investors said this included Msuk’s sale of around $124 million worth of Dogecoin in April, after he replaced Twitter’s blue bird logo with Dogecoin’s Shiba Inu dog logo, causing a surge. of 30% on the price of Dogecoin.

A “deliberate act of carnival barking, market manipulation and insider trading” allowed Musk to defraud investors, promote himself and his companies, according to the document.

Musk bought Twitter last October. He also runs SpaceX, a maker of rockets and spacecraft, as well as Tesla, which makes electric cars.

Alex Spiro, a lawyer for Musk and Tesla, declined to comment Thursday. The investors’ attorney did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Investors have accused Musk, the world’s second-richest person according to Forbes magazine, of deliberately increasing the price of Dogecoin by more than 36,000% in two years and then letting it crash.

They included their latest allegations in a proposed third amended complaint, in a lawsuit that began last June.

Musk and Tesla had sought dismissal of the second amended complaint in March, calling it a “fanciful work of fiction,” and on May 26 said another amendment was unwarranted.

In an order Wednesday, US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein said he would “probably” allow the third amended lawsuit, saying the defendants would likely not be biased.

Hellerstein also granted the investors’ request to dismiss the non-profit Dogecoin Foundation as a defendant. His attorney Seth Levine called the decision “appropriate.”