Facebook insiders sold $3.9bn of shares since scandal

Eight Facebook insiders combined to sell about $3.9bn (about R51.5bn) worth of stock since the Cambridge Analytica data-mining scandal first surfaced in March. The sales were part of pre-determined trading plans.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg accounted for about 90% of the total, according to data from InsiderInsights.com, which analyses such transactions.

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Most of Zuckerberg’s sales are part of a plan announced in September to sell as much as 18% of his Facebook stock. Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan pledged in 2015 to sell most of their shares over time to invest in philanthropic causes.

The social media giant’s stock fell 19% as of 1:25 pm. Thursday in New York after second-quarter sales and user growth disappointed investors.