Breaking: Elon Musk Buys Twitter

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Twitter’s board has accepted a $44bn offer to sell the company to Elon Musk.

Twitter chair, Bret Taylor, confirmed the development in a statement today.

“The Twitter Board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon’s proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing,” the statement reads.

He added, “The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter’s stockholders.”

Twitter shareholders will receive $54.20 in cash for each share of Twitter common stock that they own upon closing of the transaction. The purchase price represents a 38 per cent premium to the company’s closing price on April 1, the day before Musk announced he had amassed a 9 percent stake in the company, Financial Times reports.

The move shifts control of the social media platform populated by millions of users to the world’s richest man

The Tesla magnate vowed to protect free speech online, “defeat the spam bots” and “authenticate all humans”.

He said he would “enhance the product with new features” and “make algorithms open source to increase trust”.

Twitter’s chief executive, Parag Agrawal, said he was “proud of our teams and inspired by the work that has never been more important”.

Former US President Donald Trump’s supporters are hopeful this could pave the way for him to return to the platform, after he was banned for repeatedly breaching its rules around hate speech and misinformation.

“I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means,” Musk tweeted earlier today.

The deal brings to an end one of the most dramatic takeover bids in history and sent shockwaves through the world of business.

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