Elon Musk gives Tesla an ultimatum, says will quit if it doesn't fight SEC

Now, the company is at risk of losing Mr. Musk as chairman and chief executive if regulators prevail in court

Securities and Exchange Commission officials were understandably taken aback on Thursday morning when Tesla’s board — and its chairman, Elon Musk — abruptly pulled out of a carefully crafted settlement.

After the S.E.C. responded by accusing Mr. Musk, but not the company that he had co-founded, of securities fraud, the board further defied regulators, issuing a provocative statement saying that the directors were “fully confident in Elon, his integrity, and his leadership of the company.”

It was a stunning reversal: The board had rejected a settlement that was extraordinarily generous — it would have allowed Mr. Musk to remain as chief executive,