The high-profile lawsuit accusing Elon Musk of manipulating the price of Dogecoin (DOGE) has officially ended as investors withdrew their appeal to dismiss the case, Reuters reported on Nov. 15.
The lawsuit, filed in 2022, alleged that Musk and his electric car company, Tesla Inc., engaged in fraud and insider trading by using Musk’s public influence to manipulate the price of DOGE. However, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein dismissed the case in August of this year, ruling that the claims lacked legal merit.
The investors, who initially sought $258 billion in damages, argued that Musk used tweets, media appearances and promotional stunts to artificially inflate the value of Dogecoin for personal and corporate gain.
They cited Musk's 2021 appearance on Saturday Night Live, where he joked that Dogecoin was "a scam," and his tweet describing it as "Earth's future currency" as examples of his alleged market manipulation. Hellerstein dismissed these arguments, claiming that reasonable investors could not construe such comments as actionable investment advice or evidence of fraud.
The lawsuit also claimed that Musk coordinated transactions around his public statements to maximize profits and harm investors. However, the court found no evidence of insider trading or market manipulation. Hellerstein dismissed the related claims, saying the legal theories raised by the investors were inconsistent and without merit.
Last week, both sides moved to end the legal battle when the investors withdrew their appeals and Musk's team withdrew a move to sanction the investors' lawyers for allegedly pursuing a "frivolous" lawsuit.
The investors also dropped their request to punish Musk's lawyers, who they accused of interfering with the appeals process by demanding excessive legal fees.
An agreement to dismiss the appeal and related motions was filed on November 14 in Manhattan federal court and is awaiting final approval from Judge Hellerstein.
Musk, who bought Twitter in 2022 and renamed it X, has faced criticism for his influence in the cryptocurrency market. His actions around Dogecoin have sparked debate about the regulatory challenges posed by high-profile figures in speculative markets.
