The biggest “deal” for the acquisition of a private company in two decades was sealed tonight by Elon Musk, as he acquires Twitter for almost 44 billion dollars, as the New York Times wrote.
The trading of the share of the company Twitter Inc. was suspended pending announcements, as it became known from the New York Stock Exchange.
Earlier, the company’s share rose +5.5%, reaching $51.60.
This is a defining moment for the company, one of the most influential public debate platforms in the world which now faces a number of challenges.
“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy and Twitter is the digital town square”, Musk said in a statement.
The businessman has agreed to pay $54.20 per share and has stated that he intends to withdraw the company from the Stock Exchange in which it was listed in 2013.
Earlier in April, Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, offered to buy Twitter for $ 54.20 a share, or about $ 43 billion in total.
The social media company had initially denied the deal and had moved to prevent the takeover.
However, Twitter became more receptive to an offer after Musk revealed that he had secured $ 46.5 billion in funding.
The company’s board met on Sunday to discuss Elon Musk’s plan and offer, a source familiar with the situation told CNBC.
Bloomberg and Reuters had reported that the two sides could reach an agreement as early as Monday.
The board negotiated with Musk in the early hours of Monday, according to the New York Times.
I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 25, 2022
Twitter is set to announce its financial results for the first quarter on Thursday and some analysts expect them to be disappointing.
Elon Musk, an avid Twitter user himself, has long been close to the company. He had previously held more than 9% of the shares and rejected an offer to become a board member before submitting a takeover bid.
Musk has argued that Twitter needs to be “transformed” by leaving the stock market so that it can become a forum for free speech. He has also stated that the interests of Twitter board members “simply do not align with shareholders”.
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