LiveXLive May Be Under Federal Investigation Due To $2 Million COVID

Yesterday, the SEC filings outed LiveXLive, the publicly traded live-streaming company valued at $200 million. They recently received a $2 million PayCheck Protection Program (PPP) loan from the government. As it turns out, several other companies had just returned their PPP grant, which ignited this investigation. Those companies include the Los Angeles Lakers and Shake Shack. LiveXLive is adamant about keeping this stimulus loan, while the public thought otherwise of the other recipients.

The company stated they have a high chance of receiving a federal audit, but seem to be confident about keeping it. Fighting the US Treasury, SBA, and other federal agencies will have serious consequences. Would you really want to start your business back with a bad reputation after this imminent recession?

Still, LiveXLive refused a statement twice. Perhaps, they’re trying to form a statement as we speak. Who knows. One representative of theirs, Jocelyn Johnson, blasted in a series of angry emails, the following:

“I did not say to you on email that we were not giving back the funding. This is a blatant life in your story. [It] must be fixed.” – Jocelyn Johnson

News of the above comes from Digital Music News, where they claim Johnson also accused them of sloppy fact publication. Billboard broke the real story on this. The updated version is that LiveXLive’s PPP loan ended up being $1.9935 million instead. This is crucial because it could let them slide on an audit, seeing as the threshold is at $2 million. But there is no guarantee, as federal guidelines constantly change. Issues of abuse and fraud continue, and temperament could make them subject to pursue.

Live-streams prove useful during live events but without them now, where will this money be going? Do you think they should keep it? The PPP loan is supposed to help small businesses stay afloat during this hard time. And their Podcast One acquisition completed at $18 million came after receiving their loan.

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