Donald Trump accuses Truth Social co-founders of IPO delays and costly missteps in new lawsuit
Former US President Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against Wes Moss and Andy Litinsky, the co-founders of the social media platform Truth Social.
Stock turmoil follows as Donald Trump sues Truth Social co-founders. Scott Olson/Getty Images/AFP(Getty Images via AFP)
The lawsuit alleges mismanagement by the executives, which Trump claims led to significant delays in the company’s Initial Public Offering (IPO). Filed in a Florida state court, the suit by Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. seeks to have the co-founders’ shares in the company rescinded.
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Moss and Litinsky, who previously appeared as contestants on Trump’s television show ‘The Apprentice,’ proposed the idea of Truth Social to Trump after his ban from Twitter in the wake of the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
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No Trump means no Truth Social
The lawsuit states, “This was a phenomenal opportunity for Moss and Litinsky,” and asserting that “Without President Trump, Truth Social would have been impossible.”
The legal complaint, first reported by Bloomberg, accuses Moss and Litinsky of failing to establish proper corporate governance and secure a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) to facilitate the company’s public debut and provide necessary funding.
The suit was filed on March 24, subsequent to the approval by shareholders of Digital World Acquisition Corp. to merge with Trump Media & Technology Group, now renamed Trump Media, where Trump is the principal shareholder.
Trump probably diluted Truth Social’s shares, co-founders sued the platform
The legal battle between the parties escalated when Moss and Litinsky filed a lawsuit against Trump’s company in Delaware Chancery Court in February. They allege that the former POTUS attempted to dilute their shares by proposing an increase in the total number of authorized shares from 120 million to 1 billion.
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The public trading of Trump Media shares commenced on March 26, with the stock price initially soaring above $79. However, the value has since experienced a steep decline, closing at $51.60 on the following Tuesday. This downturn coincides with the company’s financial report, which disclosed a net loss of $58.2 million against a revenue of $4.1 million for the year 2023.
