Elon Musk has changed course and agreed to buy Twitter for $44 billion ahead of a scheduled trial, the company confirmed on Tuesday.
The Tesla CEO has offered to move forward with a widely publicized deal to buy Twitter in a letter filed with the SEC, and the company said it plans to complete the deal. The takeover ends a grueling months-long legal battle between the billionaire and the San Francisco-based social media company that has raised questions about the the future of business in the city.
“The Company’s intention is to complete the transaction at $54.20 per share,” a Twitter spokesperson wrote in a statement.
Musk first agreed to buy Twitter from $44 billion in April. Weeks later, however, he alleged that the company downplayed the number of inauthentic “bot” accounts on the site, effectively claiming that Twitter had falsely inflated the size of its user base.
Musk is one of the most followed accounts on Twitter, with 108 million followers as well as a history of erratic posts that have sometimes landed him in legal trouble. He frequently used his account to criticize Twitter and offer feature ideas.
Before making a formal offer to buy the company, Musk had already accrued enough stock to become the largest individual shareholder, and his initial offer represented a roughly 38% premium to the company. share price on April 1.
By July, however, Musk had soured on the deal and backed out of his offer to buy the company. This led Twitter to file a complaint against Musk; a trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 17 in Delaware Chancery Court.
Musk was seen by analysts as likely to lose in court, and if the $44 billion deal goes through it is likely to reignite concerns over the mercurial billionaire’s plans for the social network.
In a now-deleted tweet before he pulled out of the deal, Musk had hinted at the idea of turning Twitter’s San Francisco headquarters into a homeless shelter, among other things. proposed changes to its content moderation policies and business model.
“Musk owning the Twitter platform will cause a storm of concern and questions for the future among users and the Beltway,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives wrote in a note Tuesday.
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