Elon Musk has purchased a 9.2% stake in Twitter Inc., making him the platform’s largest stakeholder, just a week after indicating that he would shake up the social media business. After Musk’s purchase was revealed in a regulatory filing on Monday, Twitter shares jumped roughly 26% in premarket trade. The share is worth around $2.89 billion based on Friday’s market closing.
Musk, 50, polled his more than 80 million Twitter followers last month, asking if the company adhered to free speech values. He inquired if a new platform was needed after more than 70% responded no and stated he was seriously considering launching his own.
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Musk is one of the most well-known Twitter users, and he has a history of getting into controversy on the platform. Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk is attempting to get out of a 2018 agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that imposed restrictions on his tweeting about the electric vehicle company.
The announcement will be another key test for new Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal, who took over from Jack Dorsey after his sudden resignation in November. Agrawal promised to improve product execution, boost accountability, and make speedier decisions. By the end of 2023, the company established aggressive growth goals, including growing annual revenue to $7.5 billion and reaching 315 million daily users.
Free speech is essential to a functioning democracy.
Do you believe Twitter rigorously adheres to this principle?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 25, 2022
After Twitter revealed that Agrawal would succeed Dorsey as CEO in December, Musk uploaded a cryptic meme. It showed Agrawal in the role of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin and Dorsey in the role of Soviet secret police chief Nikolai Yezhov being pushed into the water.
What Musk intends to do with his share is unclear. According to the SEC filing, the event that triggered the disclosure occurred on March 14. The type of form utilised frequently suggests that the investor isn’t looking to take over a firm or influence who manages it.
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According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk has made approximately $1.1 billion since mid-March, based on a rise in Twitter’s stock in early trade Monday.
Twitter is under pressure to develop new things more quickly. The brand has made ambitious revenue and user growth goals to convince sceptical investors that it was serious about expanding its business. While Twitter has been gradually growing for years, its stock has trailed behind its rivals in the sector.
Musk has slammed Twitter’s recent creation of profile images connected to non-fungible tokens, claiming that the social media platform is focusing on the wrong things.
