By Matt Levine, Bloomberg
I guess it is worth saying that Elon Musk does not own Twitter Inc. He did not buy Twitter Inc. yesterday for $54.20 per share in cash. He did sign an agreement yesterday to buy Twitter for $54.20 in cash. That is a big step! It means that he probably will end up owning Twitter within a few months or so. (The deal “is expected to close in 2022”; it might take up to six months.) But he does not own it yet.
Related: Elon Musk Buys Twitter For $44B
So, for instance, he cannot change anything about Twitter yet; he can’t change moderation policies or open-source the algorithm or bring back Donald Trump, or whatever you are excited or worried about, until the deal closes. Employees who are unhappy about Musk’s plans for Twitter can quit, but he can’t fire them yet. Reuters notes:
Bret Taylor, chair of Twitter’s board of directors, aimed to reassure employees that the agreement with Musk prioritized “operating continuity” until the deal was closed.
“I think we feel very comfortable that (the deal) gives this team the ability to continue to make the company successful in between signing and closing the transaction,” Taylor said.
