Could billionaire CEO Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter finally be in the home stretch?
According to a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Musk’s acquisition of the social media platform has been unanimously approved by the board, recommending to stockholders “that you vote for the adoption of the merger agreement.”
Shareholders must still vote on the $44 billion takeover proposal. If Musk’s purchase were finalized today, investors would receive a premium of more than $15 per share at the current share price.
Musk responded to the news, posting a tweet on June 21 that “the vote of confidence is much appreciated.”
Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg at the Qatar Economic Forum on June 21, Musk confirmed that there were a few “unresolved matters” before he could seal the deal. For Musk, there are three issues that need to be resolved: fake accounts, shareholder approval, and debt financing.
“There is the question of, will the debt portion of the round come together, and then, will the shareholders vote in favor,” he said.
“There’s a limit to what I can say publicly,” he noted. “It is somewhat of a sensitive matter.”
Musk said he doesn’t want to be at the head of Twitter, preferring to focus on “driving the product.” He has never been too keen on corporate titles, changing his designation to TechnoKing at Tesla Motors.
Over the past month, there have been widespread concerns that the purchase would be called off.
In May, Musk threatened to walk away from the deal, writing in a tweet that his planned purchase was “temporarily on hold” as he waited for details on spam bots and fake accounts, although he reiterated that he was “still committed to acquisition.”
Later, Musk explained that his $44 billion offer was based on the company’s SEC filings being accurate. However, without accurate proof showing that fewer than 5 percent of the company’s accounts are spam, Musk said the “deal cannot move forward” until that proof is provided.
By Andrew Moran
