Elon Musk is set to takeover Twitter after the board of the company accepted a $44 billion offer for the company.
The world’s richest man first made the proposal of $54.20-a-share offer for the firm on April 14.
Earlier in April, Twitter had invited Mr Musk to join its board, the billionaire had initially agreed but later turned down the offer. The move would have kept him from owning more than 14.9% of the company’s stock and a takeover.
In the new proposal, shareholders will receive $54.20 in cash for each share of Twitter stock they own, which is the same as the initial offer and marking a 38% premium over the stock price the day before Musk revealed his stake in the company.
Part of Musk’s offer letter read: “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. However, since making my investment I now realize the company will neither thrive nor serve this societal imperative in its current form. Twitter needs to be transformed as a private company.”
Musk had last week disclosed that he had arranged $46.5 billion in financing to acquire the company, causing the board to meet last Sunday to evaluate the offer.
Bret Taylor, the chairman of the Twitter board in a statement. 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.”
If the takeover goes through, Musk will own one of the world’s most influential social media platforms and Twitter will move from a public quoted company to a private company.
Musk says his goal for Twitter is to promote free speech on the platform. He currently has over 82 million followers on the Twitter platform.
