By Denny Jacob


The Securities and Exchange Commission charged Robert Scott Murray and Trillium Capital with a fraudulent scheme to manipulate the stock of Getty Images Holding through a phony offer to purchase the company.

The SEC alleges that Murray and Trillium, a venture investment company he controls, in April 2023 after building stock and options positions in Getty began issuing press releases calling on Getty to sell itself or to add Murray to its board of directors. After failing to have much effect, Murray allegedly devised a plan to pump up the price of Getty by announcing a buyout offer, said the regulator.

On April 24, Murray and Trillium issued a release proposing to buy all outstanding stock of Getty for $10 a share, nearly twice the prior trading day's closing price, according to the SEC.

The SEC alleges the release was false as Murray and Trillium had no real intention of acquiring Getty nor did they make a genuine effort to fund the proposed transaction. The regulator noted that despite pledges to hold their shares, Murray started to liquidate his position in Getty within minutes after the market opened on April 24 without even waiting for Getty to respond to the announced offer.

To resolve the charges, Murray and Trillium agreed to a judgment that permanently enjoins them from future violations of these provisions of the federal securities laws, enjoins them from participating or engaging in certain securities-related conduct and bars Murray from serving as an officer or director of a public company.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts announced criminal charges against Murray, a former chief executive officer and chief financial officer of several publicly traded companies, in a parallel action.


Write to Denny Jacob at denny.jacob@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

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