After seeming to confirm Friday that his takeover of Twitter had stalled out, billionaire entrepreneur and free speech champion Elon Musk reiterated that he was “committed to the acquisition.”
SO WHAT
The dramatic reactions of the media and the stock market show Musk is the king of Twitter — whether or not he actually buys the company.
WHAT HAPPENED
Musk set off a furor by tweeting early Friday that his deal to acquire Twitter was “temporarily on hold” pending an investigation into the company’s claim – made in a May 2 regulatory filing – that spam and fake accounts constitute 5% of its user base.
“Known for his freewheeling and sometimes impulsive business style, Mr. Musk’s comments left many wondering about the future of the deal,” The New York Times reported in a breaking news story.
- Tech analyst Daniel Ives said during an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that Musk’s tweet would be widely interpreted as a pretext for trying to get out of the deal.
- “The implications of this Musk tweet will send this Twitter circus show into a Friday the 13th horror show as now the Street will view this deal as 1) likely falling apart, 2) Musk negotiating for a lower deal price, or 3) Musk simply walking away with a $1 billion breakup fee,” Ives then tweeted.
- Twitter’s stock price fell 18%.
Two hours after his panic-inducing tweet, Musk followed up: “Still committed to acquisition.”
- Shares of Twitter partly rebounded.
THE BACKGROUND
Twitter’s acceptance last month of Musk’s $44 billion offer to buy the business has thrown the company into turmoil.
- The media establishment has largely arrayed itself against the takeover, with many journalists claiming Musk’s vow to turn Twitter into a free speech oasis is cover for allowing bigotry and disinformation to run rampant on the platform.
- Amid a hiring freeze and the ousting of key executives, disgruntled Twitter employees have protested Musk’s pending acquisition of the business.
- Some industry experts have predicted Musk will eventually get cold feet on the deal and end up swallowing the $1 billion fee he’d have to pay for backing out.