Short Seller Andrew Left Says Hedge Fund Lied to SEC About Payment in Trading Probe

Andrew Left, the prominent short seller indicted by the US over trading tied to social media posts, is suing a Toronto-based hedge fund, alleging its executives lied to federal investigators about payments made to him in order to “save their own skins.”

Left accused Anson Advisors Inc., Anson Funds Management and two of its leaders in a federal lawsuit Thursday of defamation and business disparagement. Left alleges that they falsely told the Securities and Exchange Commission that he came up with an idea to funnel the proceeds of a short-selling strategy through a third party. The payments are evidence of wrongdoing in the government’s cases against him.