San Francisco, USA – Social media giant Twitter has announced that they will be acquired by multi-billionaire CEO of Tesla Elon Musk for US$44b, based on US$54.20 per share in cash. Upon completion of the transaction, Twitter will become a privately held company.
This follows after Elon Musk announced that he had previously bought a 9.2% stake in the company and invited to be part of the company’s board. However, Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal clarified back then that Musk won’t be joining the board.
Speaking about his acquisition of Twitter, Musk 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.”
He added, “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.”
Meanwhile, Agrawal commented, “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.”
The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the Twitter Board of Directors, is expected to close in 2022, subject to the approval of Twitter stockholders, the receipt of applicable regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.
Bret Taylor, Twitter’s Independent Board Chair, said, “The Twitter Board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon’s proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing. The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter’s stockholders.”
