Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk currently has agreed to acquire social network Twitter in a $44 billion deal, taking the company private.
Now, it appears Twitter could return to public ownership in a few years, according to unnamed sources speaking with the Wall Street Journal.
People familiar with the matter claim Musk plans to take Twitter public again, in as few as three years after acquiring the company, via an initial public offering.
Musk plans to finance $21 billion for Twitter himself, but has apparently been in talks with other investors such as private equity firms, to lower the amount he’ll be putting in. Apollo Global Management Inc. is one firm that is pondering Musk’s offer, according to the WSJ.
According to Musk on Tuesday, he reiterated “we will try to keep as many shareholders as legally possible in privately held Twitter!”.
“There is so much potential with Twitter to be the most trusted & broadly inclusive forum in the world!”, said Musk on Tuesday.
There is so much potential with Twitter to be the most trusted & broadly inclusive forum in the world!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 3, 2022
“That is why we must clear out bots, spam & scams. Is something actually public opinion or just someone operating 100k fake accounts? Right now, you can’t tell. And algorithms must be open source, with any human intervention clearly identified. Then, trust will be deserved,” said Musk.
That is why we must clear out bots, spam & scams. Is something actually public opinion or just someone operating 100k fake accounts? Right now, you can’t tell.
And algorithms must be open source, with any human intervention clearly identified.
Then, trust will be deserved.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 3, 2022
By setting a three year timeline to potentially take Twitter public again, it suggests Musk will make swift decisions and changes for the social network, in a short timeframe.
The Twitter-Musk deal is expected to close later in 2022.
