Starlink's finances frozen in Brazil after legal conflict with Elon Musk's X

Brazil's top judge has ordered a freeze on the finances of Elon Musk's satellite internet service, Starlink, preventing the company from conducting financial transactions in the country.

As Axios reports, the decision comes amid an ongoing dispute between Musk's social media platform, X, and Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.

Justice Moraes issued a summons on Wednesday demanding that X appoint a legal representative in Brazil within 24 hours or face suspension in the country. The summons followed previous actions by Brazilian authorities targeting social media accounts that spread misinformation and hate speech.

Starlink claimed on X that the order to freeze its finances was "issued in secret and without affording Starlink any of the due process of law guaranteed" by Brazil's constitution.

In April, Moraes revealed he was investigating Musk for obstruction of justice after Musk said he would defy a court order blocking certain X accounts in Brazil.

About 40 million people in Brazil, or roughly one-fifth of the country's population, use X at least once a month, according to market research group Emarketer, as cited by the Associated Press.

Musk responded to the financial freeze on Thursday, stating on X that "SpaceX and X are two completely different companies with different shareholders." However, the Wall Street Journal reports that Musk controls 42% of SpaceX's shares and nearly 79% of its voting power, according to a March filing with the Federal Election Commission.

Musk also announced that SpaceX would provide internet service in Brazil for free until the matter is resolved, stating, "We cannot receive payment, but we don't want to cut anyone off."

X, in a separate post, said it expects Moraes to order the platform's shutdown in Brazil soon, describing his actions as an illegal attempt "to censor his political opponents."

[Information sourced from Axios]