Elon Musk’s about-face (again) plunges Twitter
Friday, July 8, Elon Musk has signified in writing that he was withdrawing his offer to purchase. The battle will now be legal. Since the takeover offer in April, the title of the social network has fallen 29% on Wall Street.
Twitter logo displayed on a screen at the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, July 11 during the opening of the session. Shares fell further today after Elon Musk announced the withdrawal of his $44 billion takeover bid.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images/AFP
Twitter’s stock was rocked Monday on Wall Street as Elon Musk openly mocked the social network after it abandoned plans to buy the platform for $44 billion and the group braces for a legal battle.
He had already lost 5.10% on Friday and 29% in total since April 25, when the group’s board of directors accepted the takeover offer from the entrepreneur, already boss of Tesla and SpaceX.
But after several months of twists and turns, Mr. Musk let it be known in a letter to Twitter on Friday that he was terminating this agreement, considering that the company had not respected its commitments by not communicating the share of fake accounts and of spam.
The social network claims that the number of inauthentic accounts is less than 5%, a figure disputed by the multi-billionaire who considers it much higher.
To justify his renunciation, Mr. Musk also invokes several recent decisions by Twitter such as the recruitment freeze, contrary to his obligation for the company to continue to operate normally.
The reasons given by the entrepreneur do not justify a breach of contract, however, several specialists argue.
The two sides are now engaged in a legal tussle, which could cost Mr. Musk a few billion dollars if he loses.
According to several American media, Twitter has joined the services of the New York law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. This same firm had represented the Californian group just after Mr. Musk’s offer in April, when the board of directors had initially chosen to resist the project before submitting to it.
Asked by AFP, Twitter did not immediately confirm this information.
“Extreme danger”
For his part, Mr. Musk shared his first reaction on Twitter on Monday since the announcement of his withdrawal by posting an image containing several photos where he appears hilarious.
“They said I couldn’t buy Twitter. Then they refused to reveal the information about the fake accounts. Now they want to force me to take over Twitter in court. Now they are forced to reveal the information on the fake accounts”, can we read next to each snapshot.
He soon after posted a picture of actor Chuck Norris winning at chess, simply with the phrase “Chuckmate” on it, a pun between the phrase “checkmate” and the actor’s name.
Wedbush Securities’ Dan Ives said, “This is an ‘extremely dangerous’ situation for Twitter and its board as the company takes on Musk in a Game of Thrones-style legal battle to save the company. transaction or recover at least the $1 billion severance pay.”
“We do not see any other bidder standing out at the moment as the legal proceedings are about to begin in court,” adds the analyst.
Morningstar analyst Ali Mogharabi, however, believes that at the level the stock is currently trading, “other parties may be interested in Twitter.”
There is always the scenario where Elon Musk ends up buying the site, but at a renegotiated lower price, he adds in a note.
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