Democracy Now: Facebook, Morgan Stanley Face Lawsuits over IPO
Investors have launched a class-action lawsuit against Facebook, Morgan Stanley and other banks that underwrote the tech giant’s public offering, claiming the companies misstated facts and concealed relevant information about Facebook’s financial prospects. Plaintiffs say they have lost more than $2.5 billion as Facebook shares plunged in the days after the company went public. Another lawsuit has reportedly been filed in California. Regulators including the Securities and Exchange Commission have said they plan to probe issues related to the offering. Salvatore Graziano, an attorney for a plaintiff, said investors were misled.
Salvatore Graziano: “When you go public, when you raise money in the market, you are required to disclose material information. Here’s what apparently happened — what’s being discussed is that there was information put in the prospectus which was vague and then separately people at Facebook, allegedly, were talking to Morgan Stanley and the other underwriters, giving them more information, adverse information and that’s what these cases are about.”
Aware and Outraged 