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Elon Musk, Dogcoins (Montage): "For Profit, Attention and Amusement"
Photo: DADO RUVIC / REUTERS
Keith Johnson has also put money into the Dogecoin cryptocurrency as an investor.
He has now sued Elon Musk for $258 billion.
His accusation: According to Forbes, the richest man in the world used the digital currency for a Ponzi scheme.
Musk and his companies Tesla and SpaceX artificially inflated the price of Dogecoin and then let it crash, according to a filing on Johnson's behalf filed in federal court in Manhattan on Thursday.
"The accused have known since 2019 that Dogecoin has no value, but have still promoted it to profit from his trade." Musk used his status as the richest man in the world to "trade the Dogecoin for profit, attention and amusement." operate and manipulate Ponzi schemes«.
The text refers to statements by investors like Warren Buffett and technology experts like Bill Gates, who fundamentally question the value of cryptocurrencies.
Johnson wants to sue $86 billion in damages, equivalent to the decline in Dogecoin's market value since May 2021.
The total amount would roughly correspond to half of the German federal budget.
In addition, Musk and his companies should be prohibited by the court from advertising Dogecoin.
Trading in the cryptocurrency should also be classified as a form of gambling.
Statements from the respective lawyers and representatives were initially not available.
Dogecoin was originally launched as a parody.
Its value rose by a quarter in January after Musk announced the possibility of Tesla "merch" purchases with it.
On Thursday, the currency was below $0.06 per coin after hitting a record of around $0.74 in May 2021.
mike/Reuters