Brazil has taken drastic action against billionaire Elon Musk’s companies, seizing $3.3 million from his social media platform, X (formerly Twitter), and satellite internet provider, Starlink. This all started with a decision by the Brazilian Supreme Court, which unblocked the companies' bank accounts, only to withdraw the funds to enforce a hefty fine.

At the end of August, Brazilian judge Alexandre de Moraes banned X from operating in Brazil and froze Starlink’s assets, claiming that both companies were financially linked. He also fined the companies for not removing certain content and for not having a legal representative in Brazil. The total fine amounted to 18.35 million Brazilian reals (around $3.3 million). Of this, 11 million came from Starlink, and the rest from X.

Musk has been vocal about his displeasure, calling the seizure “absolutely illegal,” arguing that Starlink and X are separate entities with different shareholders. He even threatened to retaliate by seiz...