Elon Musk offers to buy Twitter for $43 billion and take it private
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Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has made a “best and final” offer to buy Twitter, saying the social media platform has “extraordinary potential” and that he is the right person to “unlock it”.
The billionaire tech entrepreneur will offer USD$54.20 per share in cash, valuing the company at about USD$41 billion. The company’s shares soared 18% in pre-market trading.
The announcement comes a week after Musk bought a 9.2% stake in Twitter and days after he turned down a seat on the company’s board.
I made an offer https://t.co/VvreuPMeLu
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 14, 2022
“I invested in Twitter as I believe in its potential to be the platform for free speech around the globe, and I believe free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy,” Musk wrote in a letter to Twitter’s board and disclosed in a regulatory filing with the SEC.
“However, since making my investment I now realize the company will neither thrive nor serve this societal imperative in its current form. Twitter needs to be transformed as a private company,” Musk continued.
“Twitter has extraordinary potential. I will unlock it.”
Since making my investment I now realize the company will neither thrive nor serve [its free speech] societal imperative in its current form. Twitter needs to be transformed as a private company.
“I am offering to buy 100% of Twitter for $54.20 per share in cash, a 54% premium over the day before I began investing in Twitter and a 38% premium over the day before my investment was publicly announced,” Musk added.
“My offer is my best and final offer and if it is not accepted, I would need to reconsider my position as a shareholder.”
“The Twitter Board of Directors will carefully review the proposal to determine the course of action that it believes is in the best interest of the Company and all Twitter stockholders,” Twitter said in a statement.
My offer is my best and final offer and if it is not accepted, I would need to reconsider my position as a shareholder.
Last week, Musk acquired a 9.2% stake in Twitter to become the company’s largest shareholder, and was offered a seat on the board for a term expiring in 2024.
The role was set to become effective on Sunday before Musk sensationally backflipped and decided against joining the company’s board.
Twitter’s share price has waxed and waned in recent times, but are up 6% this year and 18.5% since the start of the month.
Tesla’s stock dipped 1% on the news.
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