Tesla founder and CEO, Elon Musk is facing a lawsuit of USD 258 billion or the equivalent of IDR 3,853 trillion (assuming exchange rate of IDR 14,935 per US dollar) over the alleged Dogecoin pyramid scheme.
The court case claims Musk was part of a blackmail scheme to back cryptocurrencies. According to court filings filed on June 7, 2023, Musk is accused of selling 1.4 billion Dogecoins, worth more than USD 124 million or equivalent to Rp. 1.8 trillion. The records stated two different wallets, which allegedly belonged to Musk.
Elon Musk’s attorney, Alex Shapiro, disputes the allegations, according to a letter obtained by The New York Post.
“You specifically allege, without basis, the following wallets belong to Musk. The only basis for your claim is that these wallets were selling Dogecoin at a time when, according to the Third Amended Complaint, their prices were increasing,” Musk’s lawyers said, quoted by Yahoo Finance, Monday ( 19/6/2023).
A group of DOGE investors turned the lawsuit around in late May, when they accused Musk of manipulative practices that inflated the token’s price. The filing accuses him of transparent cryptocurrency market manipulation.
The lawsuit says Musk exploited his impressive Twitter following and subsequent appearances on NBC’s Saturday Night Live to drive up the price of Dogecoin.
Musk, the self-proclaimed “Dogefather” and “CEO of Dogecoin” has not shied away from his fondness for meme coins. He has repeatedly said on social media about his liking for Dogecoin.
Created as a joke in 2013 to get the crypto community to stop taking itself so seriously, the famous meme coin has soared in popularity and price.
