In a recent legal development, Elon Musk has formally denied allegations that he is the anonymous Dogecoin (DOGE) whale behind a series of large transactions. The denial comes in response to a lawsuit accusing the Tesla CEO of orchestrating a pump-and-dump scheme that harmed retail investors. Musk’s attorney, Alex Spiro, penned a letter to the plaintiff’s lawyer, Evan Spencer, asserting that the claim linking Musk to specific wallets is “without basis” and that the plaintiffs “are wrong.”
Musk’s Legal Team Strikes Back
The letter, obtained by the New York Post, directly challenges the core of the plaintiffs’ argument. “You specifically allege, without basis, that the following wallets ‘belong’ to defendants,” Spiro wrote. “The sole basis for your claim is that these wallets sold dogecoin at a time when, according to the third amended complaint, prices were up.” The exchange highlights a key point of contention: whether Musk used his influence—including changing Twitter’s logo to the Dogecoin symbol in April 2023—to inflate the token’s price before selling his holdings.
The lawsuit, originally filed in June 2022, accuses Musk of running a “crypto pyramid scheme” that allegedly resulted in approximately $86 billion in losses for investors. In April 2023, Musk’s team moved to dismiss the case, arguing that his tweets about Dogecoin were lawful expressions about a legitimate cryptocurrency. However, the plaintiffs maintain that Musk’s repeated promotions, combined with coordinated sales by large wallets, constitute securities fraud.
What’s Next in the Dogecoin Case?
Plaintiff attorney Evan Spencer responded to the letter, telling the Post: “This case will be fought in court, not the media. The plaintiffs and I are more confident than ever that the case will be successful.” With both sides digging in, the case is expected to proceed to discovery and potentially a trial. Legal experts note that the outcome could set a precedent for how courts treat social media influence and cryptocurrency market manipulation. Meanwhile, the Dogecoin community remains divided, with some viewing Musk as a champion of the meme coin and others wary of the legal risks his actions may have created.