Twitter deal ‘can’t move forward’ unless spam questions answered

Elon Musk Distributing the tweet at 3:32 a.m. ET Tuesday said He made an offer to buy Twitter ‘No way forward’ unless CEO Parag Agrawal provides evidence his estimate Less than 5% of users are bot or spam accounts.

Why it matters: analyst Believe Musk used the allegation that Twitter’s user base had more bots than the company claimed to have pulled out of a deal or negotiated a price cut, especially as Twitter’s stock plummeted amid a general market downturn.

  • Twitter said in a statement It is “committed to completing the transaction as quickly as possible and on agreed prices and terms”.

detail: Replying to an article suggesting he’s ‘may be looking for a better Twitter deal’, Musk tweet “20% fake/spam accounts, while 4x what Twitter claims, may be *much higher*.”

  • “My proposal is based on the accuracy of Twitter’s filings with the SEC. Yesterday, Twitter’s CEO publicly refused to show evidence below 5 percent. Unless he does, the deal cannot go forward,” he said. wrote.

A quick catch: Musk has been publicly backtracking on his Initial $44 billion takeover bid He has sought more details on the platform’s spam accounts since Friday, when he tweeted that the deal was “on hold”.

  • wall street once skeptical The deal will even close before then.

Big picture: Rarely have a deal of this size and impact been made publicly in such an odd way. But Musk’s reputation for spontaneity and audacity has shocked few onlookers at this point.

  • Some even wondered if the entire acquisition attempt was more than just Musk trolling Twitter.

Case: On Monday, Agrawal wrote a lengthy twitter thread Defend the company’s spam policy and explain how it handles issues.

  • Musk tweet A “poo” emoji in response.

twitter on tuesday morning return filed a preliminary proxy statement The SEC showed a timeline for negotiations with Musk. The document recommends:

  1. Twitter bankers suggest accepting Musk deal $54.20 as it is financially prudent for the company.
  2. Twitter co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey He told Musk that, in his personal view, “Twitter as a private company is better able to focus on execution,” according to the filing.
  3. Musk tells Twitter executives In March, he was considering various options for his ownership, including “starting a Twitter competitor,” in addition to the possibility of joining Twitter’s board or seeking to take Twitter private.

Between the lines: While employees were nervous, Twitter executives were trying to respond in the normal way.

  • On Friday, Twitter chairman Brett Taylor respond In response to Musk’s tweet about the deal being put on hold, he tweeted: “We remain committed to our agreement.”
  • On Thursday, Agrawal fired two of the company’s top executives and suspended hiring in a bid to take on more financial responsibility.
  • he admit the move On Friday, after Musk said the deal was on hold, he tweeted: “While I expect the deal to close, we need to be prepared for all scenarios and always do the right thing for Twitter. I am in charge of leading and Running Twitter, and our job is to build a stronger Twitter every day.”

Our thought bubble: The spam narrative appears to be a tactic to back out of the deal or change the terms.

  • Musk could have, like regular investors, demand an audit of the company’s accounts and spam policies when conducting due diligence on the deal.
  • Implying that the company’s documents are inaccurate means Musk believes executives are lying to the SEC — a serious allegation.

Bottom line: If it weren’t for Musk, this would all be shocking.

Editor’s Note: This article has been updated with new details from the Twitter agency statement.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *