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☆ Trump Media insider trading trial begins with co-founder testifying, 'I've never been paid at all'
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The first witness in the insider trading case against Bruce Garelick was Andy Litinsky, a co-founder of Trump Media. Garelick has decided to take his chances with a jury after his two co-defendants, the brothers Michael Shvartsman and Gerald Shvartsman, pleaded guilty on April 3 to insider trading charges in the case. Garelick, Bach argued, "acted in good faith at all times." Shahabian repeatedly had Litinsky describe the confidentiality agreements in letters of intent that Trump Media signed with two prospective merger partners, DWAC and Bennessere Capital Acquisition Corp. Asked if he traded stock based on the confidential information, Litinsky likewise replied, "No," noting, "It would be against the rules."

Persons: Bruce Garelick, Amr Alfiky, Donald Trump, Andy Litinsky, Litinsky, Garelick, Michael Shvartsman, Gerald Shvartsman, Gerald, Attorney Elizabeth Hanft, Michael Schvartsman, Jonathan Bach, Bach, Bruce, Michael Shvartsman's, Matthew Shahabian, Wes Moss, Trump, Michael Kovac, Wireimage, Shahabian Organizations: Manhattan Federal Court, Reuters, Trump Media, Trump, Attorney, NBC, Hammerstein, DWAC, Bennessere, Corp Locations: Manhattan, New York City, U.S, Florida, DWAC, Providence , Rhode Island, Miami

☆ Truth Social Co-Founder Says Trump Nearly Derailed Deal That Led to Market Windfall
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Matthew Goldstein | More About Matthew Goldstein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Former President Donald J. Trump’s social media company is currently worth over $6 billion. But the agreement that set the stage for its stock market debut in March was nearly derailed years earlier by Mr. Trump, who is now the biggest beneficiary of its richly valued stock, one of the firm’s co-founders said on Wednesday. Andy Litinsky, who helped start Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, testified in federal court that he had doubts about whether Mr. Trump would agree to take the firm public by merging it with a cash-rich shell company, even as the deal-signing ceremony was set to take place at the former president’s Mar-a-Lago residence in late 2021. Mr. Litinsky, a former contestant on Mr. Trump’s reality television show “The Apprentice,” said that before the ceremony, Mr. Trump had asked him whether he should go ahead with the merger of Trump Media and the shell company, Digital World Acquisition Corporation. Mr. Litinsky was in court in Manhattan testifying as a witness in an insider trading trial that arose from an investigation of traders who made millions of dollars with well-timed purchases of Digital World’s stock before the merger announcement on Oct. 20, 2021.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Andy Litinsky, Litinsky, ” Organizations: Trump Media & Technology Group, Truth, Trump Media, Acquisition, Mr, Digital Locations: Manhattan

☆ Legal Fight Over Trump Media’s Ownership Adds to Its Woes
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Matthew Goldstein | David Yaffe-Bellany | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In February, they sued the company, claiming that Trump Media — which made its trading debut last month at an $8 billion valuation — was trying to deprive them of the full value of their shares. Now they also claim the company is trying to prevent them from selling those shares. In a separate lawsuit that followed, Trump Media claimed that Mr. Moss and Mr. Litinsky should forfeit their shares because their poor decision-making had contributed to a yearslong delay in its merger with Digital World Acquisition Corporation. Trump Media agreed to merge with Digital World, a cash-rich shell company, in 2021 as a way to go public, but the deal closed only in March. The pair’s stake is worth more than $220 million based on the current $26 share price of Trump Media, compared with $2 billion for Mr. Trump.

Persons: Wes Moss, Andy Litinsky, Donald J, Trump, Moss, Litinsky Organizations: Trump Media & Technology Group, Truth, Trump Media, Acquisition Corporation

☆ Trump Media payday: What Truth Social executives got paid in stock and compensation
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

Those thresholds for the share price are well below where Trump Media stock was trading on Monday, when it closed at $37.17, down more than 8%. The filing disclosed that Trump Media awarded company stock to Nunes, chief financial officer Phillip Juhan, and chief operating officer Andrew Northwall. The three top executives, like Trump himself, are currently barred from selling any of their common stock in Trump Media for the next six months. CNBC asked a spokeswoman for Trump Media why promissory notes were used to grant stock to the executives. Legal battlesBesides Trump, the biggest shareholders in Trump Media are two corporate entities.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Donald Trump, Devin Nunes, Trump, Kevin Murphy, Murphy, Nunes, Phillip Juhan, Andrew Northwall, Juhan, Northwall, DWAC, we've, Tom Williams, Kash Patel, Patel, Dan Scavino, Scavino, Department of Defense Kash Patel, Justin Sullivan, Sandro De Moraes, Vladimir Novachki, Scott Glabe, Novachki, Glabe, De Moraes, Eric Swider, beneficially, Renatus, Swider, Andy Litinsky, Wes Moss, Moss, Patrick Orlando, Mike Pont Organizations: Trump Media, Trump . Trump Media, Nasdaq, Corp, Trump, University of Southern, Securities and Exchange Commission, DWAC, SEC, CNBC, Partners, Northwall, Juhan, Trump Media's, U.S, Capitol, CQ, Inc, Getty, Equity, Messrs, Republican, Hudson Digital, Trump White House, Staff, Department of Defense, Digital, Renatus, ARC Global, United Atlantic Ventures, Twitter, Facebook, NBC, FilmMagic Locations: Juhan, California, Minden, Minden , Nevada, Orlando, New York City

☆ Trump to be deposed in dispute with media company co-founders
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is scheduled to be deposed later this month by lawyers for co-founders of his social media company as part of a dispute over ownership in Trump Media & Technology Group which went public last week. They said in 2021 they were pledged 8.6% of pre-merger Trump Media stock for helping to launch the company. Trump Media sued Litinsky and Moss in Florida on March 24, and is seeking to strip them of their stock, which it said they failed to earn due to mismanagement. Trump owned 90% of the social media company prior to its merger last month with a blank check firm that took the company public. In midday trade on Thursday, Trump Media was down 4.2% at $46.70, valuing the company at more than $6 billion.

Persons: Donald Trump, Christopher Clark, Andy Litinsky, Wes Moss, Litinsky, Sam Glasscock, Trump Organizations: Trump Media & Technology Group, Delaware's, Chancery, Trump Media, Trump, United Atlantic Ventures Locations: New York, Moss, Florida, Delaware, Washington, Georgia

☆ Truth Social owner Trump Media sues two of its own co-founders, seeking to wipe out their shares
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Trump Media & Technology Group, the Truth Social owner controlled by former President Donald Trump, recently filed a lawsuit against two of its co-founders seeking to eliminate their stakes in the multi-billion dollar company. The lawsuit marks the latest twist in the legal saga surrounding the quest to bring Trump Media and Truth Social public — a deal that has spiked Trump’s net worth and created a frenzy on Wall Street. Trump Media filed a lawsuit on March 24 in Florida state court against Andy Litinsky and Wes Moss, two co-founders of Trump Media. The lawsuit states that Litinsky and Moss were to receive 8.6 million shares in the new company, through United Atlantic Ventures. Trump owns 78.8 million shares in Trump Media, which went public last week.

Persons: CNN —, Donald Trump, Andy Litinsky, Wes Moss, “ Moss, Litinsky, Moss, Maruf Organizations: CNN, CNN — Trump Media & Technology Group, Trump Media, Truth, United Atlantic Ventures, Bloomberg News, Trump Locations: Florida, Moss, Delaware

☆ Potential Obstacle to Trump Media’s Merger Appears to Have Been Cleared
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-09 | by ( Matthew Goldstein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The threat of a last-minute obstacle to the merger of former President Donald J. Trump’s social media company and a cash-rich shell company appears to have subsided. Two early founders of Trump Media & Technology Group reached a temporary truce with Mr. Trump’s company at a hearing on Saturday morning in Delaware Court of Chancery. The lawsuit, filed on Feb. 28 by a company controlled by Wes Moss and Andy Litinsky, had the potential to delay a scheduled March 22 vote by shareholders of Digital World Acquisition Corp. on the long-delayed merger with Trump Media. If shareholders approve the merger, it would give Trump Media more than $300 million in badly needed cash to keep operating. The deal would also boost Mr. Trump’s net worth by more than $3 billion, based on Digital World’s current stock price.

Persons: Donald J, ’, Wes Moss, Andy Litinsky Organizations: Trump Media & Technology Group, Truth, Digital, Trump Media Locations: Delaware Court

☆ Former 'apprentices' and Trump Media cofounders file lawsuit claiming company execs tried to dilute their stake ahead of a potential merger
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-02 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Trump Media & Technology Group cofounders accused the company of conspiring to dilute their shares. The lawsuit could complicate an upcoming shareholder vote on a merger that would take the company public. The bid would see Trump's company, the parent company of his social media network Truth Social, merge with blank-check company Digital World Acquisition. The suit also claims that the Trump Media board planned to give new shares to "Trump and/or his associates and children," per The Post. The two-year attempted merger between Trump Media and Digital World Acquisition Corp has faced ongoing delays, partly due to SEC investigations into potential securities violations.

Persons: Trump Media & Technology Group cofounders, Andy Litinsky, Wes Moss, —, Donald Trump's, Trump, Moss, Melania Organizations: Trump Media & Technology Group, Service, United Atlantic Ventures, Washington Post, Trump, Business, Twitter, Securities and Exchange, Digital, Trump Media, UAV, SEC

☆ Lawsuits Threaten to Delay Trump Media’s Merger
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Matthew Goldstein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A rash of lawsuits are threatening to stall a shareholder vote on the long-delayed merger of former President Donald J. Trump’s social media company and a cash-rich shell company. Two early founders of Trump Media & Technology Group have filed suit to preserve their ownership stake in the business, the parent company of the Truth Social online posting platform. The lawsuit, filed Wednesday under seal in Delaware Chancery Court by a partnership led by Wes Moss and Andy Litinsky, claims that Trump Media is trying to dilute its ownership stake in the company, of which Mr. Trump is a majority shareholder. The lawsuit seeks an expedited hearing in Delaware state court ahead of a March 22 vote by shareholders of Digital World Acquisition Corp. on its merger with Trump Media. Mr. Moss and Mr. Litinsky were contestants on Mr. Trump’s realty television show, “The Apprentice,” and went to him in January 2021 with the idea of creating a social media company.

Persons: Donald J, Wes Moss, Andy Litinsky, Trump, . Moss, Litinsky, ” Organizations: Trump Media & Technology Group, Trump Media, Digital, Trump’s realty Locations: Delaware Chancery, Delaware

☆ Trump Media sued by co-founders ahead of DWAC merger, potential setback for lucrative deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Donald Trump (R) and producer Andy Litinsky (L) attend the Comedy Central Roast Of Donald Trump at the Hammerstein Ballroom on March 9, 2011 in New York City. The partnership, United Atlantic Ventures alleges that Trump Media & Technology Group engaged in "wrongful 11th hour ... maneuvering" to dilute UAV''s minority stake in the media company, a court filing says. Donald Trump attends the 'Celebrity Apprentice' Red Carpet Event at Trump Tower on January 5, 2015, in New York City. "They actually went out and did the work, they created Truth Social, and now the beneficiary of that, Donald Trump, doesn't want to pay." CNBC has requested comment from spokesmen for Trump, TMTG and DWAC about the lawsuit, which was first reported by The Washington Post.

Persons: Donald Trump, Andy Litinsky, Moss, Wes Moss, Trump, Jean Carroll, Christopher Clark, Clark, Donald J, TMTG, UAV's, TMTG's Organizations: Trump Media, Twitter, Facebook, United Atlantic Ventures, Trump Media & Technology Group, Trump Tower, Trump, Republican, TMTG, CNBC, The Washington Post, Securities and Exchange Commission, Department of Justice, SEC Locations: New York City, TMTG, Delaware, New York, partnership's Delaware

☆ While building Truth Social, Trump spoke with rivals about competing partnerships
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Jack Stebbins | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The TRUTH Social website is seen on a mobile device with an image of former US president Donald Trump in the background in this photo illustration in Warsaw, Poland on 23 February, 2022. Months after Donald Trump began building his social media platform, Truth Social, he considered jumping ship and backing a competitor, according to an insider account. Litinsky and Moss officially partnered with Trump through their company, United Atlantic Ventures, in February 2021 to build Trump Media and Technology Group, the company behind Truth Social. Months after the initiation of the Trump Media and Truth Social project, Trump met with Gettr. He was offered $5 million a year for his participation, and, according to Wilkerson's daily log, the Truth Social co-founders wondered if Trump would strike a "side deal."

[1/2] The Truth social network logo is seen displayed behind a woman holding a smartphone in this picture illustration taken February 21, 2022. The involvement of the previously unnamed financial backers of Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) – parent company of social media app Truth Social – shows how Trump tapped his political supporters to launch an outlet aimed at political conservatives and libertarians after he was banned from Twitter and Facebook following the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on Congress. TMTG launched Truth Social in February in the Apple App Store and in Google’s Play Store in October. Truth Social has been downloaded 2.9 million times across both platforms, according to market tracker Appfigures. Trump had 4.37 million followers on Truth Social as of Oct. 27, compared to the more than 88 million followers he had on Twitter when the platform permanently suspended him.

[1/2] The Truth social network logo is seen displayed behind a woman holding a smartphone in this picture illustration taken February 21, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationOct 28 (Reuters) - Ever since former U.S. President Donald Trump launched a new media company aimed at rivaling Twitter, there has been a mystery over who provided the money. TMTG launched Truth Social in February in the Apple App Store and in Google’s Play Store in October. Truth Social has been downloaded 2.9 million times across both platforms, according to market tracker Appfigures. Trump had 4.37 million followers on Truth Social as of Oct. 27, compared to the more than 88 million followers he had on Twitter when the platform permanently suspended him.

☆ The company behind Truth Social fired its co-founder after he shared whistleblower documents with the Washington Post, the publication reported
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The company behind Truth Social fired one of its co-founders, the Washington Post reported. Will Wilkerson shared documents with the Post related to an SEC whistleblower complaint he filed in August. Trump Media fired him last Thursday for sharing "unauthorized disclosures," per the publication. Will Wilkerson, who was the company's senior vice-president of operations, shared documents with The Post related to an SEC whistleblower complaint he filed in August. On Thursday, Trump Media dismissed Wilkerson, attributing the move to "unauthorized disclosures" he made to The Post, the publication reported.

CNN —A former executive at Donald Trump’s media company claims the former President retaliated against a board member who refused to give Melania Trump shares of the company, according to a report from The Washington Post. Wilkerson told the Post that Litinsky believes his ouster was retribution for his failure to cede his shares to Melania Trump. Wilkerson told the Post that Trump refused to put any of his own money into the company despite demanding to own 90% of its shares. A liquidation would have also threatened the additional $1 billion the Trump media company has raised. Digital World shares fell 8% on Monday to $16.11, leaving them down nearly 70% so far this year.

☆ A co-founder of the firm behind Truth Social says Trump retaliated against another exec who refused to gift some of his shares to Melania
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-16 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

An email obtained by the Post showed another co-founder believed Trump was retaliating against him. Trump had been given a 90% stake in the company when it was founded, according to the SEC complaint. Wilkerson said the former president asked Litinsky to give some of his shares to Melania Trump. According to a March email obtained by the Post, Litinsky also believed he had been retaliated against. "President Trump over the past 2 months has repeatedly demanded that I give my TMTG equity to Melania Trump," Litinsky wrote, according to a screenshot of the email published by the Post.

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