Tesla Investors Seek Testimony Of Financier Elon Musk Consulted With In 'Am Considering Taking Tesla Private' Trial

Tesla Inc. TSLA investors who have sued the company are seeking the testimony of the financier that CEO Elon Musk spoke with in 2018 regarding a potential transaction to take the electric vehicle maker private, Reuters reported Monday.

What Happened: Egon Pierre-Durban, the co-chief executive of private equity firm Silver Lake Technology Management, spoke with Musk before his infamous “funding secured” tweet in 2018, the report noted, citing a letter by the Tesla shareholders’ attorneys to U.S. Magistrate Judge Kandis Westmore.

See also: How to Invest in Tesla Stock

Durban reportedly continued discussing a potential going private transaction with Musk in the days afterward.

Tesla shareholders said in the letter that they have a right to depose about the discussions Durban had with Musk regarding the potential going-private deal, according to Reuters.

However, Durban replied in a joint filing that a deposition would be a burden because plaintiffs already have the transcript of his testimony to the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission in 2018 about his talks with Musk.

See Also: Ark Sells $43.7M In Tesla While Cathie Wood Likens Elon Musk Company To Apple

Why It Matters: Musk’s “funding secured” tweet on August 7, 2018, and his promise to take Tesla private at $420 a share helped push Tesla’s stock price higher by 13% on that day and also triggered a full-blown investigation by SEC.

Although he never followed through, the tweet cost Musk and Tesla a combined $40 million to settle fraud charges with the SEC. Musk also agreed to step down as Tesla chairman for at least three years.

Musk has gotten into regulatory hot water because of his tweets.

In March, the National Labor Relations Board ordered Musk to remove an “unlawful tweet” in 2018 that threatened Tesla workers hoping to unionize.

Price Action: Tesla shares closed almost 3.3% higher in Monday’s trading at $709.67.

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