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Elon Musk To Buy Twitter For $44 Billion


Elon Musk buys Twitter for $44 billion

Elon Musk, a self-described “liberalist,” has criticized Twitter’s policies.

New York:

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, reached a deal on Monday to buy Twitter for $44 billion, capping a story complete with threats of hostile takeovers before handing him over. personal control over one of the most influential social media platforms on the planet.

Twitter famously served as a megaphone for former US president Donald Trump before the platform banned him, and Musk – a self-proclaimed “free speech autocrat” – has said he wants to reform what he considers the platform’s overzealous content. moderation.

“Freedom of expression is the cornerstone of a working democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where issues important to the future of humanity are debated,” Musk said in a statement. statement released by Twitter. “I also want to make Twitter better than ever enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open-source to increase reliability, defeating spam bots and authenticating all humans. “

The publicly traded company will now become a private company owned by Musk, who negotiated a purchase price of $54.20 per share, Twitter said.

“Twitter has a purpose and relevance that impacts the whole world. Being deeply proud of our teams and inspired by the work has never been more important,” said the company’s CEO. , Parag Agrawal said in a tweet.

Last week, Musk lined up about $46.5 billion in financing to make the purchase, and Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, predicted earlier in the day that it was because the board couldn’t find one. another buyer, so it is more likely that he will accept your offer.

“This has basically put[them]back against the wall, they have to come to the table,” he said in an interview on CNBC.

On Wall Street, Twitter shares traded 5.9% higher at around 19:15 GMT.

– Trump back? –

Musk, who has complained about excessive censorship on the platform, bought a 9% stake in Twitter in early April, then offered to buy the entire company, citing his mission to protect freedom. speech.

Initially, the company’s board of directors said they were considering his offer, but then they turned him down and adopted a “poison” scheme that made it difficult for Musk to get a controlling position. more control.

Last week, Musk – whose vast fortune stems from the popularity of Tesla electric cars as well as other business ventures – said he had arranged the financing.

Despite Musk’s wealth, financial problems are seen as a potential obstacle because most of his holdings are in Tesla stock, not cash.

In a filing, Musk pointed to $13 billion in debt from a financial consortium led by Morgan Stanley, a $12.5 billion margin loan from the same bank, as well as $21 billion from his personal assets behind this deal.

Musk’s efforts have raised hopes of Twitter’s commercial potential, which has struggled to achieve profitable growth despite its massive cultural and political influence.

Under Agrawal, who took over as Twitter CEO late last year, the company has made progress on new monetization features, such as subscription products, Truist Securities said in a note, adding that “in the short term, Musk’s involvement at this stage risks disrupting those efforts.”

But the Tesla chief’s polarizing campaign has also raised concerns among tech and free-speech experts, who point to Musk’s unpredictable statements and a history of bullying critics. , which is the opposite of his stated goal.

Progressive group Media Matters for America warned that Trump, who was banned on Twitter after last year’s attack on the US Capitol by supporters seeking to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, could return if Musk’s purchase is successful.

“Any negotiations to sell Twitter to Musk must include clear enforcement mechanisms to uphold and uphold existing community standards, including weeding out those who violate the standards.” that standard,” group president Angelo Carusone said in a statement.

(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from an aggregated feed.)





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