The social media giant Twitter may be about to be sold to billionaire Elon Musk. This has come as a surprise to many, who, used to Musk's absurdist and often unintentional humor, expected the announcement that he was willing to buy the company was a joke.
The offer, initially $43 billion, or $54.20/share, is slightly above Twitter's current share price of around $52. Tesla, another company acquired by Musk, is not involved in the deal. Twitter has said that the deal could still fall through, but that they expect it to occur. The offer was reportedly not taken seriously by Twitter, until Musk put together a financing package which would make it possible for him to make the $43 billion purchase.
Musk has stated that he believes Twitter's current CEO, Parag Agrawal, has been responsible for its 10% drop in share price. Musk's plans if he acquires the platform include changes to the company's advertising policy, an increase in freedom of speech on the platform, and seemingly in contradiction with that, harsher treatment of "trolls". Additionally, Musk has stated that Dogecoin, a satirical cryptocurrency, would be accepted as payment on the platform. It's unclear whether this is a joke, or a serious proposition, as the two are often of identical commercial viability in Musk's case.
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