Elon Musk buys his way onto Twitter's Board of Directors


Just two weeks ago, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk expressed wishes to build his own social media. However, yesterday it was revealed that Musk had already poured almost $3 billion into Twitter in order to get more sway on his platform of choice.

Just one day after Musk's purchase was confirmed, the billionaire has already slid into a directorial position at the company. Importantly, this may be the company's only way of stopping the billionaire from taking over the company.

Elon Musk sits on Twitter’s Board of Directors

Reported by The Verge, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that Musk will now serve as a Class II Director for the company. Elon Musk will serve on the directorial board until Twitter’s 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.

Until then, Musk “will not, either alone or as a member of a group, become the beneficial owner of more than 14.9% of the Company’s common stock”. Additionally, the billionaire will not be able own more than that amount for 90 days after his departure.

Musk's inclusion on the Board of Directors can be seen as an anti-takeover measure to stop the Tesla CEO from purchasing the company. After all, Musk has often just purchased his way into companies instead of building his own, e.g. Tesla and Neuralink.

With the board restrictions in place, Musk will not be able to outright own Twitter until the end of 2024. Of course, that also depends on whether or not the billionaire will still be interested in buying the social media platform.

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Great Value To The Board

After the announcement of Musk's inclusion on tyke board of directors went live, Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal discussed the move on the platform. Agrawal explained that despite being a very critical voice against the company, Musk will help to grow Twitter.

“Through conversations with Elon in recent weeks, it became clear to us that he would bring great value to our Board,” the CEO said. “He’s both a passionate believer and intense critic of the service which is exactly what we need on Twitter and in the boardroom, to make us stronger in the long-term. Welcome Elon!”

Prior to his acquisition of 9.2% of the company, Musk was highly critical of Twitter. The Tesla CEO — who was once censored for posting Nazi imagery — expressed beliefs that the private platform goes against free speech. With power on the board of directors, Musk will likely leverage his sway to make the platform more appealing to him.

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