There have been internal concerns that Trump Media could be misleading investors, a source said. But with its largest shareholder about to be president, experts doubt the SEC is up to the job of investigating Truth Social’s parent company.
by Justin Elliott, Robert Faturechi, and Alex Mierjeski, for ProPublica
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Last month a major shareholder of a publicly traded company took to social media to complain that people—perhaps short sellers—were spreading lies that could hurt his firm’s stock price.
“There are fake, untrue, and probably illegal rumors,” the post read. “I hereby request that the people who have set off these fake rumors or statements, and who may have done so in the past, be immediately investigated by the appropriate authorities.”
The Securities and Exchange Commission doesn’t typically take its marching orders from shareholders on social media. But in this case, the poster was Donald Trump, who’s just weeks away from being inaugurated and gaining the power to appoint the head of the SEC.
When Trump takes office in January, a president will for the first time be the majority owner of a publicly traded company, Trump Media, which runs Truth Social. Former SEC officials are concerned about how Trump could try to use the agency to go after the foes of his company, which accounts for more than half his fortune. They also worry that the agency isn’t up for the job of taking on Trump Media should it run afoul of securities laws.
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