Trump Media tells Nasdaq short sellers may be using “potential market manipulation” in DJT shares

Trump Media & Technology Group is alerting the Nasdaq exchange that its stock — trading under the ticker DJT, after former President Donald Trump’s initials — may be the victim of “potential market manipulation” due to short-selling activity.

The letter, which was sent Thursday to Nasdaq CEO Adena T. Friedman, claims that some traders are relying on so-called “naked” short selling, which is when an investor shorts a stock without first borrowing the shares. It’s a practice that is effectively banned in the U.S., with regulators requiring trading firms to make sure that traders have the securities on hand to complete a short sale.

The complaint comes after a wild ride for Trump Media’s stock since going public last month on the Nasdaq exchange. The shares lost two-thirds of their value from an initial peak, slicing billions of value from the fledgling media business, whose primary asset is the social media service Truth Social.

While Trump Media has regained some of that lost ground, rising 20% this week through Monday morning trading, some investors had complained on Truth Social that they suspected short sellers were contributing to the decline.