Trump Media asks Nasdaq to cooperate with investigations into trading in its shares

(Reuters) – The company that owns Donald Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social, said on Tuesday it had requested Nasdaq’s cooperation in any investigation into alleged market manipulation of its shares by so-called short sellers. “naked”.

Devin Nunes, CEO of Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), in a letter to Adena Friedman, CEO of Nasdaq, said he has asked Congress to urge the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) to issue electronic blue sheets for TMTG trade data from April 29. until May 3 and some other dates in May and June.

Electronic blue sheet data contains both transaction and account holder information, which allows regulatory agencies to analyze a company’s trading activity.

Nunes said the “anomalous issues” around TMTG stock trading “appear to be getting even worse,” citing SEC data.

He requested data on financial companies like Citadel Securities, Jane Street Capital and UBS.

The CEO asked Nasdaq to “cooperate fully with any congressional or other investigation into these companies, including by promptly providing responsive data in Nasdaq’s possession.”

Nunes previously wrote to Friedman to alert the exchange of “potential market manipulation” of TMTG stock, asking the exchange to help prevent the alleged manipulations.

“Naked” short selling, which is generally illegal in the United States, involves selling stocks without first borrowing them or determining whether they can be borrowed, creating the risk that the seller will not be able to deliver the shares.

In late May, the company asked the commissioner of Louisiana’s Bureau of Financial Institutions to open an investigation into alleged “illicit activities” in the trading of its shares.

TMTG has had a rollercoaster ride since its IPO in March of this year. An army of Trump supporters and speculators snapped up its shares, sending them up as much as 59% in their Nasdaq debut, but the stock has since reversed those gains.

(Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico; editing by Maju Samuel)