Trump media group alleges manipulation in company's stock, requests action from Congress

The Trump Media and Technology Group alleged Wednesday that the company's stock may be being manipulated and requested congressional action. 

Devin Nunes, CEO of the Trump Media & Technology Group, wrote a letter to prominent members of Congress, including House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, that stated there have been "ongoing anomalies in DJT trading."

The Trump Media and Technology Group trades on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange under the ticker “DJT.”

"DJT has continuously remained on Nasdaq’s Reg SHO Threshold List since April 2, 2024," the letter reads. "An appearance on the threshold list results from persistent settlement failures, and triggers a heightened responsibilities for market participants. For threshold securities such as DJT, SEC guidance clearly states that the only way to establish 'reasonable grounds' for short sales is if the broker-dealer pre-borrows the securities; moreover, 'a broker-dealer may not re-apply a locate for intraday buy to cover trades.'”

You can read the letter here: 

In March, TRUTH Social became a publicly traded company following the shareholders' vote to merge with Digital World Acquisition Corp.

According to NASDAQ, under Rule 203(c)(6) of Regulation SHO, a “threshold security” is "any equity security of any issuer that is registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act, or that is required to file reports under Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act (commonly referred to as reporting securities), where, for five consecutive settlement days:

• There are aggregate fails to deliver at a registered clearing agency of 10,000 shares or more per security;
• The level of fails is equal to at least one-half of one percent of the issuer’s total shares outstanding; and
• The security is included on a list published by a self-regulatory organization (SRO).

A security ceases to be a threshold security if it does not exceed the specified level of fails for five consecutive settlement days."

According to Nunes, it has been almost 30 days since the security was put on the "threshold list," and concluded by warning about the possible harm being done to retail shareholders. 

"As noted in my previous letter, I believe quick action is necessary to protect retail shareholders, identify wrongdoers, and determine whether any laws including RICO statutes and tax evasion laws have been violated," he concluded. "I appreciate your prompt attention to these matters and remain willing to assist your investigation in any way possible."