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, Reuters reported.
Musk sells $8.5 bn worth Tesla shares to finance deal for Twitter
Musk disclosed he sold $8.5 billion worth of Tesla shares, a move likely aimed at helping finance his deal for Twitter.
The Tesla chief executive also told the banks he will seek moderation policies on the social media platform that are as free as possible within the legal constraints of each jurisdiction Twitter operates, the sources said, a position that he has repeated publicly.
The $13 billion Twitter loan is equivalent to seven times Twitter's 2022 projected earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. This was too risky for some banks who decided to participate only in the margin loan, the sources said to Reuters.
Musk has secured $7.14 billion in funding from a group of investors that includes Oracle Corp co-founder Larry Ellison and Sequoia Capital to fund his $44 billion takeover of Twitter Inc, according to a filing on Thursday, an earlier report said.
Saudi Arabian investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who had initially opposed the buyout, also agreed to roll his $1.89 billion stake into the deal rather than cashing out, the filing showed.
Musk lines up new CEO for Twitter
Elon Musk has lined up a new CEO for Twitter and told banks that agreed to help fund his $44 billion acquisition offer about his plans to monetize tweets, according to a report from Reuters.
A source told Reuters that Musk has decided on who he plans to appoint as the new chief executive of Twitter, but the source didn’t name the person. Twitter’s current CEO Parag Agrawal, who took the role after Jack Dorsey stepped down in November, is expected to remain as CEO until the deal is completed.
Reuters reported that Musk told Twitter chairman Bret Taylor that he does not have confidence in the company’s management, which is a sentiment that he also stated in SEC filings.
What about current CEO Parag Agrawal?
Parag Agrawal had tweeted about his 'stable' position in the company:
Agrawal would be set for a significant compensation package if the deal closes and Musk brings in new management, as he would receive $38.7 million due to a clause in his contract, according to the company’s latest proxy filing.
Musk plans to make money from tweets
Reuters reported that Musk told banks that he plans to develop more ways to make money from tweets. For example, he said that he plans to create a way to monetize tweets that go viral or include important information. He also suggested the idea of charging a fee when third-party websites quote or embed tweets from verified accounts.
(With inputs from Reuters)
