Musk sells nearly $7 billion in Tesla shares amid Twitter legal battle

Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk sold $6.9 billion worth of shares in the electric automobile company, tweeting that it was important to avoid an emergency sale of Tesla stock amid a legal showdown with Twitter Inc over the $44 billion takeover deal.

Musk, the world's richest person, had said in April that there were "no further TSLA [Tesla shares'] sales planned"— after he sold $8.5 billion worth of shares in the company back then.

However, legal experts have suggested that if Musk loses his battle against Twitter and is forced to complete the acquisition or pay a stiff penalty, he might have to sell more Tesla shares.

Musk tore up his April 25 agreement to buy the social media platform, after which the two sides have been engaging in a long-drawn legal battle that could still cost Musk billions of dollars. The two sides head to trial on October 17.

• Twitter rejects Musk's counterclaims as 'implausible'