Elon Musk
Elon Musk has agreed to buy Twitter for $44 billion (£34.6 billion), as the world’s richest man vowed to make free speech the “bedrock of democracy”.
Twitter’s stockholders will receive $54.20 in cash for each share of Twitter common stock that they own under the terms of the agreement inked on Monday, marking a 38 per cent premium over Twitter’s closing price at the start of the month.
The Tesla billionaire, a prolific tweeter and frequent critic of Twitter’s handling of moderation issues, said the deal was primarily motivated by his desire to promote free speech on the platform.
In a statement announcing the deal on Monday, he said: “Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.
“I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans.
“Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”
The deal marks one of the biggest leveraged buyouts in history and hands Musk with the potential to shape global politics, business and culture.
The billionaire, who has more than 83 million followers on Twitter, has repeatedly said he wants to “transform” the platform by giving users more control.
It follows a dramatic few weeks of speculation about Twitter’s future, after Musk revealed at the start of the month that he had taken a nine per cent stake in the company, temporarily making him the largest shareholder.
Twitter’s board subsequently launched a so-called poison pill defence to shield itself from a hostile takeover by the South African entrepreneur.
However, the board was forced to consider a potential deal over the weekend after Musk unveiled a $46.5bn financing package, including $21bn of his own money.
The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by Twitter’s board of directors, is expected to close in 2022, subject to the approval of Twitter shareholders.
The deal is not expected to face serious scrutiny from US competition authorities because Musk’s major business interests, including electric car company Tesla, the SpaceX rocket business and tunnelling firm the Boring Company, do not compete with Twitter.
Twitter board chair Bret Taylor said the company’s directors “conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon’s proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing”.
He added: “The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter’s stockholders.”
Parag Agrawal, Twitter’s chief executive, said: “Twitter has a purpose and relevance that impacts the entire world. Deeply proud of our teams and inspired by the work that has never been more important.”