Elon Musk Sued For $258 Billion For Claiming He Was Running A Pyramid Scheme To Promote Dogecoin | Science & Technology News
Elon Musk is being sued for $258 billion (£209 billion) for allegedly running a pyramid scheme to advertise a cryptocurrency called Dogecoin.
The digital asset was launched as a joke in 2013 and was designed to mock Bitcoin.
But the cryptocurrency – also known as DOGE – hit the headlines after a massive spike last year.
In a little over four months, Dogecoin went from $0.004 to $0.73 – an increase of over 18,000%.
Musk frequently tweeted about DOGE around this time, and on the day the coin started to drop in value, he described it as a “hustle” on the American comedy show Saturday Night Live.
Dogecoin has dropped significantly over the past year – and at the time of writing, it is down 92% from the record high seen last May.
The richest man in the world – along with Tesla and SpaceX, companies of which he is CEO – is accused of “promoting Dogecoin to profit from his trade”.
A complaint filed in a New York court adds: “Musk used his pedestal as the world’s richest man to operate and manipulate the Dogecoin pyramid scheme for the benefit of the United States.” profit, exposure and entertainment.”
Musk is being sued by an American man named Keith Johnson, who alleges that he “scammed money” as a result of the businessman’s endorsement.
Mr. Johnson’s lawyers assert that cryptocurrencies “have no value at all” – and court filings contain quotes from billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, both of which question the value of the assets. such digital assets.
Plaintiff wants to represent people who have lost money through Dogecoin since 2019.
In addition to his claim of $258 billion in damages, he also wants Musk, Tesla, and SpaceX to be banned from advertising DOGE.
Earlier this year, Tesla started accepting Dogecoin as a method of payment for its goods – but not its electric cars.
Elon Musk – who is currently in the process of taking over Twitter – has yet to comment on the lawsuit.
