IT House April 26 news, Twitter announced in today's press release that it has accepted Elon Musk's proposal to buy the company for $44 billion (about 287.32 billion yuan). Upon completion of the transaction, Twitter will become a privately held company.
Musk bought the company for $54.20 per share, the same price he gave in his initial offer on April 14.
"Free speech is the cornerstone of how democracy works, and Twitter is a digital town square where people discuss issues that are vital to the future of humanity," Musk said in a statement in a press release. "I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making algorithms open source to increase trust, beating spam bots, and authenticating everyone."
Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal also praised the deal in a press release, saying "twitter's purpose and relevance affect the whole world."
IT House learned that Musk outlined his plans to fund the deal in a filing filed with the SEC on Thursday, which includes $25.5 billion in loans and $21 billion in personal equity. Analysts believe the loans could cost Twitter up to $1 billion a year in service fees, or about 20 percent of the company's annual revenue.
Shortly after Musk announced the acquisition plan, Twitter's board developed a "poison pill" plan, suggesting that it intended to resist Musk's acquisition. It's unclear what caused the company to change its mind. A New York Times report on Monday said Twitter employees disagreed on the news and received little information about ongoing negotiations.
Musk has previously been outspoken in criticizing Twitter and calling himself an "absolutist of free speech." In an interview with Chris Anderson during TED 2022, Musk said: "It's important that people have realities and opinions that they can speak freely within the confines of the law. ”
Twitter said it would freeze product changes until Friday and would not allow product updates unless there was something important. This is intended to prevent employees from making unauthorized changes. The deal is expected to close in 2022, but will also require approval from Twitter shareholders and regulatory approval.
Twitter shares tumbled 5.66 percent to $51.7 at $51.7 at the close of the deal on Monday, giving it a market capitalization of $39.477 billion.
