Musk says he has $46.5 billion in funding to buy Twitter, but notes the board has yet to respond to his unsolicited take-private proposal.
Twitter (TWTR) – Get Twitter, Inc. Report shares moved lower Thursday after billionaire Tesla (TSLA) – Get Tesla Inc Report CEO Elon musk said he is still interested in negotiating the purchase of the social media group but hasn’t yet determined if he’ll take his now $46.5 billion offer directly to shareholders.
In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing published Thursday, Musk said he’s received a commitment to debt financing from Morgan Stanley MS, as well as other institutions, for around $13 billion.
The New York Post reported Tuesday that Musk is prepared to put up between $10 billion and $15 billion of his estimated $300 billion fortune to buy Twitter, which he has said is worth $54.20 per share, but is facing difficulty in convincing other investment partners to fund his acquisition.
Earlier media reports suggested that Apollo Global Management has expressed willingness to use its credit investment platform to support any move to buy the micro-blogging website, including Musk’s unsolicited take-private proposal.
Musk added that he has not yet decided if he’ll take his offer, which values Twitter $46.5 billion, directly to shareholders, noting that he’s prepared to negotiate with the company and its board of directors. Twitter, however, has not yet responded to his proposal, Musk contended.
Twitter adopted a so-called ‘poison pill’ defense last week which allows existing shareholders to buy more Twitter stock at a discount should any one, or a group of, investors gain control of 15% of the company without board approval.
Twitter shares were marked 0.8% lower in early Thursday trading to change hands at $46.91 each.
