GRIFTER IN CHIEF
Investors plead guilty to insider trading in Trump Media dealBrad Reed
April 3, 2024
RAW STORY
Truth Social (Shutterstock)
Two investors have pleaded guilty to an insider trading scheme related to the recent merger involving Trump Media and Technology Group, the parent company behind former President Donald Trump's Truth Social media platform.
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said on Wednesday that Michael Shvartsman and Gerald Shvartsman have each pleaded guilty to a single round of securities fraud related to a scheme they concocted to benefit from the merger between Digital World Acquisition Corporation and Trump Media.
"Michael and Gerald Shvartsman admitted in court that they received confidential, inside information about an upcoming merger between DWAC and Trump Media and used that information to make profitable, but illegal, open-market trades," said Williams in a prepared statement. "Insider trading is cheating, plain and simple, and today’s convictions should remind anyone who may be tempted to corrupt the integrity of the stock market that it will earn them a ticket to prison."
According to the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the two men "bought millions of dollars of DWAC securities on the open market before the news of the Trump Media business combination was public" and even "tipped others about the upcoming merger, inducing further trades in DWAC securities on the basis of the MNPI they had obtained subject to their non-disclosure agreement and through their associate’s board seat."
Per CNN, "There was no allegation in the indictment that Trump himself had any involvement in the alleged insider trading scheme."
Trump Media first went public last week and sparked a wave of speculative investment that saw the firm's market cap rise to over $8 billion before its shares crashed on Monday when it released a financial report showing that the company lost $58 million over the last fiscal year on revenues of just over $4 million.
More than 13,000 say Trump should be investigated for Truth Social stock fraud
Truth Social (Shutterstock)
Two investors have pleaded guilty to an insider trading scheme related to the recent merger involving Trump Media and Technology Group, the parent company behind former President Donald Trump's Truth Social media platform.
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said on Wednesday that Michael Shvartsman and Gerald Shvartsman have each pleaded guilty to a single round of securities fraud related to a scheme they concocted to benefit from the merger between Digital World Acquisition Corporation and Trump Media.
"Michael and Gerald Shvartsman admitted in court that they received confidential, inside information about an upcoming merger between DWAC and Trump Media and used that information to make profitable, but illegal, open-market trades," said Williams in a prepared statement. "Insider trading is cheating, plain and simple, and today’s convictions should remind anyone who may be tempted to corrupt the integrity of the stock market that it will earn them a ticket to prison."
According to the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the two men "bought millions of dollars of DWAC securities on the open market before the news of the Trump Media business combination was public" and even "tipped others about the upcoming merger, inducing further trades in DWAC securities on the basis of the MNPI they had obtained subject to their non-disclosure agreement and through their associate’s board seat."
Per CNN, "There was no allegation in the indictment that Trump himself had any involvement in the alleged insider trading scheme."
Trump Media first went public last week and sparked a wave of speculative investment that saw the firm's market cap rise to over $8 billion before its shares crashed on Monday when it released a financial report showing that the company lost $58 million over the last fiscal year on revenues of just over $4 million.
More than 13,000 say Trump should be investigated for Truth Social stock fraud
M.L. Nestel
April 3, 2024
RAW STORY
(Photo illustration by Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Trump's Truth Social Nasdaq run so far has been topsy turvy — having suffered a nearly $4 billion hit since last week's money monsoon debut — and now a petition has amassed 13,000 digital signatures to push for former President Donald Trump to be investigated for fraud.
"Just days after it went public, and its stock price placed its value in the billions, Donald Trump's 'Truth Social' crashed back to Earth, with that same stock dropping like a rock," reads the petition launched by a progressive organization known as Left Action, and first reported by Newsweek.
Their pitch continued by asking where the blame should be cast for letting the $50 million profit from 2022 pruned into a $58 million loss the following year, with trickling revenue of $4 million.
The numbers are hard to hide.
Truth Social boasts "far fewer users than any other social network that has gone public," PBS' William Brangham reported. "The tech research firm SimilarWeb estimates TRUTH Social had about five million users last month. That's compared to more than three billion on Facebook and two billion on TikTok."
The downturn in the stock fueled Left Action's fraud probe call.
"In short, it was a disastrous performance," the petition states, adding, "but the numbers weren't revealed until after the stock went public, meaning those buying the stock were left in the dark until it was too late — and their investments had collapsed in value."
The petition throws up two scenarios: the rollercoaster stock, bearing Trump's initials "DJT" was all happenstance and "legit" or "maybe critical information was withheld in order to keep the true state of the company out of the spotlight."
The stock for the Truth Social platform came out of the gate last Monday going for $49.90 per share. It shot up to a high of $79.38 on March 26, CBS News reported.
Then the fall on earnings and losses took it down 21% on Monday, closing at $48.66 and suffering a $3.8 billion bite, the outlet reported.
As of Wednesday's close, the stock was $48.81.
The source of its shaky start on the public stage has Left Action pointing all fingers at the 45th president.
"No doubt, anyone foolish enough to buy into Trump's promises was probably someone who would lose their money on some idiotic venture soon enough," according to the petition. "But fraud is fraud, and there are laws, and Donald Trump is not above them."
(Photo illustration by Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Trump's Truth Social Nasdaq run so far has been topsy turvy — having suffered a nearly $4 billion hit since last week's money monsoon debut — and now a petition has amassed 13,000 digital signatures to push for former President Donald Trump to be investigated for fraud.
"Just days after it went public, and its stock price placed its value in the billions, Donald Trump's 'Truth Social' crashed back to Earth, with that same stock dropping like a rock," reads the petition launched by a progressive organization known as Left Action, and first reported by Newsweek.
Their pitch continued by asking where the blame should be cast for letting the $50 million profit from 2022 pruned into a $58 million loss the following year, with trickling revenue of $4 million.
The numbers are hard to hide.
Truth Social boasts "far fewer users than any other social network that has gone public," PBS' William Brangham reported. "The tech research firm SimilarWeb estimates TRUTH Social had about five million users last month. That's compared to more than three billion on Facebook and two billion on TikTok."
The downturn in the stock fueled Left Action's fraud probe call.
"In short, it was a disastrous performance," the petition states, adding, "but the numbers weren't revealed until after the stock went public, meaning those buying the stock were left in the dark until it was too late — and their investments had collapsed in value."
The petition throws up two scenarios: the rollercoaster stock, bearing Trump's initials "DJT" was all happenstance and "legit" or "maybe critical information was withheld in order to keep the true state of the company out of the spotlight."
The stock for the Truth Social platform came out of the gate last Monday going for $49.90 per share. It shot up to a high of $79.38 on March 26, CBS News reported.
Then the fall on earnings and losses took it down 21% on Monday, closing at $48.66 and suffering a $3.8 billion bite, the outlet reported.
As of Wednesday's close, the stock was $48.81.
The source of its shaky start on the public stage has Left Action pointing all fingers at the 45th president.
"No doubt, anyone foolish enough to buy into Trump's promises was probably someone who would lose their money on some idiotic venture soon enough," according to the petition. "But fraud is fraud, and there are laws, and Donald Trump is not above them."
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