Twitter jumps 4.5% after Elon Musk puts up another $6.25 billion of his own wealth to fund the takeover deal

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Twitter jumps 4.5% after Elon Musk puts up another $6.25 billion of his own wealth to fund the takeover deal
Tesla chief executive Elon Musk put up another $6.25 billion of his own wealth to fund his $44 billion takeover of Twitter on Wednesday.Larry Busacca/Getty Images for The New York Times
  • Twitter rose around 4.5% as markets opened after Elon Musk pledged to put up more of his own wealth for a buyout.
  • The Tesla CEO's plan now includes another $6.25 billion of equity to fund the proposed $44 billion deal.
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Twitter stocks rose by around 4.5% as markets opened Thursday after Elon Musk fronted more of his own wealth to fund his $44 billion buyout offer.

Musk will put up another $6.25 billion of equity for the deal, lifting the total to $33.5 billion from an initial $27.25 billion, according to an SEC 13D filing on Wednesday.

It also said Musk is talking to Twitter shareholders, such as the social-media platform's former CEO Jack Dorsey, about the possibility of their retaining the stock after the proposed takeover, as a way to get more financing for the deal.

Tesla CEO Musk has abandoned plans to rely on a margin loan against his shares in the electric-vehicle maker, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Musk's renewed commitment to the Twitter bid follows a period of uncertainty, where he declared the takeover "temporarily on hold". That came after a company filing said less than 5% of the platform's accounts are spam or fake — something Musk has cast doubt on.

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Twitter said in April it had accepted Musk's buyout offer, pending regulatory approval by shareholders. The deal is expected to close in 2022.

The company's shareholders voted against re-electing an ally of Musk, Egon Durban, to the board at an annual meeting Wednesday. Durban is co-head of private equity firm Silver Lake.

Either party can walk away for the deal for a $1 billion break-up fee. Twitter's CEO said last week the company remains committed to enforcing Musk's merger agreement at an offer of $54.20 a share.

Despite Twitter's rally, the stock is down about 12% year-to-date. Its slide has come amid a broad tech stock sell-off as investors weigh up rising interest rates, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and recession risks.

Meanwhile, Tesla was up 0.2% at just under $661, as investors assessed the impact of Musk's move on the stock. Its price has fallen about 38% this year.

Those losses have hit Musk's net worth, which has dropped below $200 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Read more: Morgan Stanley's Mike Wilson says the S&P 500 will fall by another 14% into a bear market. He recommends buying these 15 stocks to weather the plunge and outperform peers when the bull returns.

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