Elon Musk gets board approval for $44 billion Twitter deal

Twitter’s board of directors unanimously recommended Tuesday that shareholders support Elon Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of the company, according to a US Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, agreed to buy Twitter in April. Still, the business mogul has faced numerous roadblocks in his pursuit of Twitter, but he is now one step closer to closing the deal.

Twitter board stated in an investor statement included in the SEC filing that it “decided that the merger agreement is advisable and that the merger and the other transactions contemplated by the merger agreement are fair to, prudent, and in the best interests of Twitter and its stockholders.”

The letter did not specify a date for the vote, but Bloomberg reported that it could happen in late July or early August.

Though the company’s share price has fallen significantly from the $54.20 per share that Musk initially proposed, he signalled his intention to proceed with the transaction in a meeting with Twitter employees last week when he allegedly stated his desire for 1 billion subscribers. Twitter has declined to comment further.

Given that the group had previously authorised the acquisition, the board’s suggestion came as no surprise, but it is the latest stage in a lengthy process fraught with twists, turns, and uncertainty.

Musk previously threatened to withdraw from the agreement if Twitter could not provide proof that less than 5 per cent of its accounts were bots. Later, he accused Twitter of “actively fighting and blocking” his request for bot data, but the company appears to have decided to release the data.

The business mogul told Bloomberg on Tuesday at the Qatar Economic Forum that the bot issue and shareholder approval are two of three issues that must be resolved before the sale can be completed. According to Musk, the third source of concern is whether the debt portion of the transaction will be completed.

Musk stated that he is willing to revise the terms of the agreement, stating that a cheaper price is not “out of the question.”

Twitter, on the other hand, has clarified that it does not plan to restructure the current agreement. In April, Twitter co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey expressed his support for the deal, saying Musk is the “singular solution” he believes in.