Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Musk to lead Twitter temporarily after $44 bln takeover - source

Musk to lead Twitter temporarily after $44 bln takeover - source

Elon Musk is expected to become Twitter's temporary CEO after closing his $44 billion takeover of the social-media firm, a person familiar with the matter said on Thursday, as the billionaire inches closer to securing funds for the deal.

Musk, the world's richest man, is also the CEO at Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) and heads two other ventures, The Boring Company and SpaceX.

Tesla shares dropped over 8% on Thursday, as investors fretted that Musk's involvement with Twitter could distract him from running the world's most valuable electric-car maker.

Twitter shares, on the other hand, extended gains and were up about 4% at $50.89, closer to the deal price of $54.20, as investors bet that the new funding made the completion of the deal more likely.

Parag Agrawal, who was named Twitter's CEO in November, is expected to remain in his role until the sale of the company to Musk is completed. CNBC first reported on Thursday that Musk plans to become CEO of Twitter on an interim basis.

Earlier on Thursday, Musk listed a group of high-profile investors who are ready to provide funding of $7.14 billion for his Twitter bid, including Oracle's co-founder Larry Ellison and Sequoia Capital.


Saudi Arabian investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who had said last month that the deal price was not sufficient for him to sell his shares, said Musk would be an "excellent leader" for Twitter and agreed to roll his $1.89 billion stake into the deal.

"Great to connect with you my "new" friend @elonmusk ... Kingdom Holding Company and I look forward to roll our ~$1.9 bn in the "new" Twitter," Alwaleed said in a tweet.

Musk increased the financing commitment to $27.25 billion, which includes commitments from 19 investors, while reducing a margin loan from Morgan Stanley to $6.25 billion. He has already secured commitments for $13 billion in loans.


The other investors include crypto firm Binance, New York-based real estate tycoon Steven Witkoff's firm and DFJ Growth IV Partners, which has investments in the Boring Company, SpaceX, SolarCity and Tesla.

"We hope to be able to play a role in bringing social media and web3 together and broadening the use and adoption of crypto and blockchain technology," Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said.

Reuters reported on Monday that Musk was in talks with large investment firms and high-net-worth individuals about taking on more financing for his Twitter acquisition and tying up less of his wealth in the deal.

Musk will continue to hold talks with existing shareholders of Twitter, including the company's former chief Jack Dorsey, to contribute shares to the proposed acquisition, according to a regulatory filing.

Larry Ellison, a board member at Tesla and a self-described close friend of Musk, has committed $1 billion for the funding.

Musk, a self-proclaimed free speech absolutist who has advocated user-friendly tweaks to Twitter, such as an edit button and defeating "spam bots" that send overwhelming amounts of unwanted tweets, has previously said he would try to keep as many investors in Twitter as possible.

Investors have been fretting over whether Musk will complete the Twitter deal.

In April, he decided at the last minute not to take up a seat on Twitter's board. In 2018, Musk tweeted that there was "funding secured" for a $72 billion deal to take Tesla private but did not move ahead with an offer.

Musk would have to pay a $1 billion termination fee to Twitter if he walked away, and the social media company could also sue him to complete the deal.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Druzhba Pipeline Incident Sparks Geopolitical Tensions
Cost of Opposition Leader Péter Magyar's Economic Plan Revealed
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Budapest Central European Fashion Week Kicks Off
U.S. Celebrates Labor Day
Hungarian National Team Captain Scores Epic Goal
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Japanese Customer Sways from VW to BYD after “Unbelievable” Test Drive amid Dealership Expansion
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
White House Eyes Budapest for Peace Talks
Cave Diving Beneath the Streets of Budapest
Another American Restaurant Chain Opens in Budapest
Hungarian Opposition Politician Supports Ukrainian Commander
Opposition Leader Threatens Media Outlets
American Airlines Adds New Flights to Budapest
F1 Hungarian Grand Prix Wraps Up
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
U.S. Trade Representative says Washington still negotiating trade deals after court rules tariffs illegal
Von der Leyen says Europe drawing up 'precise' plans to send troops to Ukraine
Kremlin accuses Europe of hindering Trump’s peace efforts in Ukraine
×