Elon Musk Twitter - latest: Twitter boss says company still evaluating Tesla chief’s $43bn bid for platform
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Your support makes all the difference.Elon Musk has made a shock offer to buy the entirety of Twitter.
The billionaire said that he did not have confidence in the company’s management and that it needed to undergo changes that could not happen without it being purchased.
He offered over $40 billion for the company, and said that he might sell his existing shareholding if the offer is not accepted.
Mr Musk announced recently that he had bought just under 10 per cent of the company, making him its biggest shareholders. He was offered and initially accepted a seat on its board – before announcing that he would not join after all, prompting speculation over his plans.
Now he has said that he wants to buy the company to protect “free speech” and unlock what he said is the “extraordinary potential” of the social network.
NFL great Tom Brady asks Elon Musk to delete embarrassing photo if he buys Twitter
The legendary quarterback once posed for an unflattering shirtless photo at the NFL Combine as he tried to get drafted by professional teams, and now he wants the entrepreneur to get rid of it.
“If you buy twitter can you delete the combine photo? @elonmusk” Brady tweeted on Thursday.
One Twitter shareholder rejects Musk’s bid
Saudi Prince Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud, one of Twitter’s largest shareholders, rejects Elon Musk’s bid, according to reports
Despite his committed use of the platform, Mr Musk has shared a photo comparing Twitter’s new chief executive Parag Agrawal to Joseph Stalin, and has asked whether a “new platform” is needed to encourage free speech.
The American ideals of free speech stems from the First Amendment of the US Constitution. It states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”.
In 2018, the billionaire was accused of fraud by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) after he tweeted that he was considering taking Tesla private for $420 a share.
“Musk’s statements, disseminated via Twitter, falsely indicated that, should he so choose, it was virtually certain that he could take Tesla private at a purchase price that reflected a substantial premium over Tesla stock’s then-current share price, that funding for this multi-billion dollar transaction had been secured, and that the only contingency was a shareholder vote,” the SEC suit said.
Subsequently, after a $20m settlement was paid by Mr Musk and Tesla, the billionaire was forced to have company lawyers examine his tweets before they were sent – something that was not always enforced.
Twitter to reportedly hold all-hands meeting
Twitter will apparently hold an all hands at 2pm ET (around 7pm GMT) for all employees.
Elon Musk’s tumultuous relationship with Twitter
Mr Musk tweeted last month that he was “worried about de facto bias in ‘the Twitter algorithm’ having a major effect on public discourse” and that “free speech is essential to a functioning democracy”. Mr Musk also said that Twitter serves as the “de facto public town square”, which is not true.
Twitter has 77.75 million users in the United States, while the population of the country is 329.5 million. Globally, Twitter only has 436 million monthly active users, putting it significantly behind Pinterest, Snapchat, and TikTok and ludicrously lower than Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook which have around 6,500 million monthly active users combined globally.
Investor sues Elon Musk
The complaint reportedly filed in New York federal court accuses the Tesla chief of violating a regulatory deadline to disclose his stake in Twitter when it was at least 5 per cent.
Instead, Mr Musk announced details of his shares in the company only after it almost doubled to just under 10 per cent, the complaint says.
The class action filed in the Manhattan federal court accused the billionaire of making “materially false and misleading statements and omissions” by failing to disclose his investment in Twitter by 24 March as per federal law.
Mr Musk’s regulatory filings reveal that he bought about 620,000 shares at $36.83 apiece on 31 January, and continued to rack up more stake in the company through 1 April.
“By failing to disclose his ownership stake ... Musk was able to acquire shares of Twitter less expensively during the Class Period,” the lawsuit noted.
It says the delay also hurt less wealthy investors who sold their Twitter shares in the two weeks before the billionaire acknowledged holding a major stake.
Gab offers Elon Musk a seat on its board
Meanwhile Gab, the social media site that markets itself as a free speech alternative to Twitter, has offered Elon Musk a seat on its board in exchange for funding.
The official account tweeted in reply to Mr Musk, asking for $2 billion.
Gab claims it has 1.1 million registered users, a minuscule number compared to Twitter’s 290.5 million monthly active users
Twitter’s board is meeting now
Twitter’s board is reportedly meeting now to discuss Mr Musk’s offer, according to unnamed sources speaking to CNBC
Twitter employees rocked by announcement
Twitter employees have expressed their shock at the latest announcement:
The company’s staff have been outspoken about recent developments with Musk. They had suggested previously they were stressed about what might be happening to the company – and when he was taking up his board seat, Mr Musk had indicated he would hold a Q&A session with the aim of putting those worries to rest.
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