The SEC has accused Vince McMahon, the former CEO of WWE, of concealing payments made to two women in undisclosed settlements.

The SEC has accused Vince McMahon, the former CEO of WWE, of concealing payments made to two women in undisclosed settlements.
The SEC has accused Vince McMahon, the former CEO of WWE, of concealing payments made to two women in undisclosed settlements.
  • The Securities and Exchange Commission accused Vince McMahon, the former head of WWE, of not informing the company's board about $10.5 million settlements with two women.
  • The SEC announced that McMahon has agreed to settle administrative charges, pay a $400,000 civil penalty, and reimburse the WWE $1.33 million after admitting to violating the Securities Exchange Act.

The SEC accused Vince McMahon, the former head of WWE, of not informing the company's board about $10.5 million settlements with two women.

The SEC announced that McMahon has agreed to settle administrative charges, pay a $400,000 civil penalty, and reimburse the WWE $1.33 million after admitting to violating the Securities Exchange Act.

The SEC stated that McMahon's failure to inform the WWE's board, legal department, accountants, or auditor of the settlements "bypassed WWE's internal accounting controls and resulted in inaccurate financial statements in 2018 and 2021."

McMahon was obligated to pay $3 million to a former WWE employee in exchange for her silence about their relationship and her releasing any potential legal claims against him and the company.

Last year, a former WWE employee named Janel Grant filed a federal lawsuit against McMahon, accusing him of sexual assault and trafficking, and alleging that he had agreed to pay her $3 million as part of a nondisclosure agreement. However, Grant claims that McMahon only ended up paying her $1 million.

According to the SEC order, McMahon was required to pay a former independent contractor for WWE who claimed that "McMahon assaulted her and hindered her career after she declined to participate in a sexual relationship with him."

The SEC stated that due to the absence of documentation of agreements with women, WWE overstated its net income for 2018 by approximately 8% and its 2021 net income by approximately 1.7%.

This is breaking news. Please refresh for updates.

by Dan Mangan

Politics