Brazil’s Supreme Court ruled on Friday that cash be transferred from Starlink and X bank accounts to settle fines levelled against Elon Musk’s social network firm.
Justice Alexandre de Moraes of Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF) ordered the release of R$18,350,000 to the national treasury from funds previously blocked in the bank accounts of X (formerly Twitter) and Starlink.
“After the payment of the full amount that was owed, Justice [de Moraes] considered there was no need to keep the bank accounts frozen and ordered the immediate unfreezing of bank accounts/financial assets,” the statement says.
Musk purchased X, then known as Twitter, in 2022. SpaceX runs the satellite internet service known as Starlink.
Following the transfers, the court ordered that the frozen bank accounts and assets of X and Starlink be released, stating that there was no longer any reason to detain them.
The court suspended X at the end of August, and it remains in effect.
Earlier this year, Justice Moraes ordered that X erase specific accounts as part of an ongoing investigation into “digital militias” suspected of disseminating fake news and hate speech during former President Jair Bolsonaro’s government.
The corporation argued that the ruling breached the Marco Civil da Internet and the Brazilian Federal Constitution.
Furthermore, on August 30, Moraes issued an order suspending the company’s operations because it failed to meet the legal obligation to select a local representative.
On September 12, Citibank S.A. and Itaú Unibanco S.A. notified the STF that they had properly followed the orders.
Bolsonaro has been accused of inciting Brazil’s January 8 riots and attempting to organise a coup.
Musk supported Bolsonaro, in part because the former Brazilian president allowed his company, Starlink, to operate in the country.
We earlier reported that X’s head of global affairs recently submitted his resignation from the social media powerhouse.
Nick Pickles, who spent a decade with the firm formerly known as Twitter, announced in a release that he decided to depart a few months ago and has since been working with Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X, to navigate the transition.
