Next Bridge Hydrocarbons, Inc., a privately held oil and natural gas exploration and production company, faces ongoing challenges with its U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings, as outlined in its June 18, 2025, update.
The company’s efforts to comply with SEC requirements have delayed key projects and left investors, particularly the MMTLP community, frustrated by the lack of resolution for the unprecedented U3 trading halt and delisting of Meta Materials Preferred Shares (MMTLP) in December 2022.
Next Bridge Hydrocarbons’ recent update detailed its efforts to address additional SEC comments on its 2023 Form 10-K and other filings, which have hindered its ability to advance strategic initiatives.
The company noted that it believed it had resolved SEC comments on its Registration Statement in September 2024, but further requests for amendments, particularly regarding the restatement of its 2022 financials, have prolonged the process.
These delays have impacted projects such as the Louisiana Heritage Play transaction and three other initiatives, which remain on hold due to regulatory expenses and uncertainty.
The company’s ongoing regulatory challenges have drawn scrutiny from investors, particularly those affected by the MMTLP situation, who are seeking clarity on both Next Bridge’s operations and the unresolved issues stemming from the 2022 halt.
The MMTLP Community’s Unresolved Grievances
The MMTLP community, comprising retail investors who held Meta Materials Preferred Shares, continues to demand answers nearly three years after the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued a U3 trading halt on December 8, 2022.
The halt, described by FINRA as an “extraordinary event” to prevent settlement issues, froze trading of MMTLP shares just before their planned conversion into Next Bridge Hydrocarbons stock.
This action led to the delisting of MMTLP, leaving thousands of investors unable to liquidate their positions or receive unencumbered Next Bridge shares.
According to FINRA’s February 2023 statement, the U3 halt was implemented to address settlement issues involving 2.65 million unsettled trades, largely tied to short positions and ledger imbalances.
However, no corporate action was taken to require short sellers to close their positions, leaving investors in limbo.
The MMTLP community has been vocal on platforms like X, expressing frustration over the lack of transparency and accountability from regulators and Next Bridge.
In September 2023, Congressional questioning of SEC Chair Gary Gensler highlighted the MMTLP issue, with Gensler’s responses failing to provide clear answers, further fueling investor distrust.
Many in the community believe the halt and delisting unfairly stripped them of their investments, with some estimating MMTLP’s potential value at the time of the halt to be significantly higher than its last traded price, based on limited trading data.
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Community Action and Investor Frustration
The MMTLP community has organized extensively on X, using hashtags like #MMTLP and #FINRAFraud to amplify their calls for justice.
Investors have shared evidence of their efforts, including letters to regulators and lawmakers, demanding resolution for the 2.65 million unsettled trades and the delivery of unencumbered Next Bridge shares.
The community’s frustration is compounded by Next Bridge’s acknowledgment that SEC requirements have delayed efforts to address ledger imbalances caused by the halt, as noted in the company’s February 2025 update.
The lack of a clear timeline for resolution has left investors feeling neglected, with many expressing on X that the SEC and FINRA have failed to protect retail investors.
For retail investors, the absence of a mechanism to resolve the unsettled trades or deliver shares continues to be a central point of contention.
Path Forward
Next Bridge Hydrocarbons remains focused on resolving its SEC filing issues to advance its operational goals, but the company faces increasing pressure to address the MMTLP community’s concerns.
The ongoing delays in its filings and the suspension of key projects highlight the broader challenges of navigating a complex regulatory environment.
For MMTLP investors, the priority remains achieving clarity and justice for the 2022 U3 halt.
Investors seeking updates can visit www.nextbridgehydrocarbons.com/investors to sign up for email alerts or follow the company on social media at @nbhydrocarbons on X and “Next Bridge Hydrocarbons” on LinkedIn.
However, for the MMTLP community, these updates offer little resolution until the issues from the 2022 halt are addressed.
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