Elon Musk Buys Twitter For $44 Billion

Phone With Twitter IconSouvik Banerjee

On Monday, April 25, Twitter accepted Elon Musk's buyout proposal. Musk offered to purchase Twitter at $54.20 per share for a total of $44 billion dollars.

Twitter announced that upon the completion of the deal, the company would then be privately owned.

Twitter trading stopped Monday afternoon just before the announcement. Shares were up 6%.

“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated," said Musk of the social media platform. Musk aspires to resolve bot problems on Twitter, introduce new products, and authenticate human beings on the platform.

Musk also owns Tesla, SpaceX, The Boring Company, and Neuralink. He is prolific on Twitter and has stirred up controversy, sometimes even costing shareholders with his speculations and moves. In 2020, Musk Tweeted "Tesla stock price too high imo" and wiped $14 billion of his own company's value in the fallout that ensued.

Twitter was founded in 2006 by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams. In the second quarter of 2021, Twitter had 206 million active users worldwide.

Twitter's suspension of former President Donald Trump's @realdonaldtrump account in 2021 has created speculation as to the role of social media in government and democracy. Some speculate what Musk's purchase of Twitter will mean for free speech and moderation on the platform.

There has also been speculation as to Twitter's place in Web 3.0 and cryptocurrency, particularly after Twitter allowed NFTs as profile photos. Elon Musk is a strong advocate for cryptocurrency.