Elon Musk.Photo: Theo Wargo/Getty
Elon Muskhas reached a deal to buy Twitter.
The news was announced onMonday following Musk’soffer to take over the social platform.
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In a statement, Bret Taylor, Twitter’s Independent Board Chair, said that the company’s 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.”
In anSEC filinglast week, Musk — whobecame Twitter’s largest shareholderin early April — offered to pay $54.20 per share for 100 percent ownership of Twitter, and said that he wants to take the company private.
“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,” the entrepreneur wrote in a letter to Twitter’s Chairman of the Board Bret Taylor.
The billionaire went on to note that this proposal is his “best and final offer.” Should it not be accepted, he said he would have to “reconsider my position as a shareholder.”
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Although Twitter was initially expected to turn down Musk’s$43 billion offerto buy the social platform,Reuters,The Wall Street JournalandThe New York Timesall reported over the weekend that both sides were close to reaching a deal.
After Musk made his offer on Wednesday, Twitter put a so-called poison pill in place, which would prevent him from increasing his stake in the company beyond 15%, according toThe Wall Street Journal.
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The company began to warm up to Musk’s offer after the billionaire — who had not previously indicated how he would pay for the deal — shared he had already lined up $46.5 billion in financing,The Wall Street Journal reported.
Musk also met with several shareholders privately on Friday, people familiar with the matter told the newspaper.
Musk’s move to buy Twitter came days after Twitter’s CEO announced that the tech executivedeclined an invitation to join Twitter’s board.
source: people.com
