UPDATE: Musk appeared at the TED conference today, where he offered more details on why he wants to acquire Twitter.
Original Story:Some thought Elon Musk's interest in Twitter had been satiated after he bought a 9.2% stake in the company, but he was just getting started.
As Reuters reports, a regulatory filing has revealed Musk is attempting to buy Twitter and has offered $54.20 per share to do so. That's a 38% premium on the Twitter stock price at closing on April 1, and amounts to an offer of $41.39 billion for the company. The acquisition attempt has inevitably sent Twitter's share price north by 12% in pre-market trading.
"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," Musk said in a letter to Twitter Chairman Bret Taylor. "My offer is my best and final offer and if it is not accepted, I would need to reconsider my position as a shareholder."
The billionaire had already decided against joining the Twitter board and is facing a potential class-action lawsuit because he waited too long to disclose his 9.2% stake. All that will certainly fade into the background if he does manage to pull off an acquisition with this offer.