Published - Apr 14, 2022 @ 3:36 PM (EET)

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Billionaire Elon Musk has made a "best and final offer" to acquire 100% of Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) and take it private in a deal valuing the social-media company at about $43 billion.  The social media company's shares soared by 12% in premarket trading.

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In a filing Thursday, Musk announced the $54.20-a-share proposal with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, an offer nearly 38% above Twitter's closing price of $39.31 on 1 April.

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"I invested in Twitter as I believe in its potential to be the platform for free speech around the globe, and I believe free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy," Musk told Twitter Chairperson Bret Taylor on Wednesday, as disclosed in the filing.

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"However, since making my investment, I now realize the company will neither thrive nor serve this societal imperative in its current form.  Twitter needs to be transformed as a private company."

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Even as Twitter pursues big projects such as audio chat rooms and newsletters to end long-running stagnation, the company's lower-than-expected user additions in recent months have raised doubts about its growth prospects.

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According to Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives, Musk will face a series of questions around financing and regulatory balancing the Tesla owner's time in the coming days.  However, based on the filing, "it is a now or never bid for Twitter to accept," Ives said.

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DISCLOSURES

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Soon after Musk's 9.2% position in Twitter was announced, former shareholders of the social networking company sued Musk, allegedly breaching federal law and claiming they were deprived of recent stock gains.

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Under U.S. securities law, investors are required to reveal their investments within ten days after acquiring a 5% stake in the company.  Musk only disclosed his stake after nearly double that figure.

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The latest news follows Musk's decision not to join the Twitter board, as per Chief Executive Parag Agrawal's tweet on Sunday.

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