According to media reports, billionaire Elon Musk is willing to invest between $10 billion and $15 billion of his own money to take the microblogging site Twitter private.
Musk has a 9.1 percent ownership stake in Twitter, which is currently valued at $3.4 billion, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) earlier this month.
The New York Post reported on Tuesday that Musk may be willing to borrow against his current stake if necessary, a move that could potentially raise several billion dollars.
“The co-investors will combined have more equity than Musk but he will be the biggest single holder,” one of the sources was quoted as saying.
Nonetheless, the bid will be carried primarily by outside financing for Musk, who has enlisted Morgan Stanley to raise another $10 billion in debt against Twitter in the manner of a traditional leveraged buyout, according to the sources.
The majority of the money, however, will come from co-investors who will finance a hostile tender offer directly to Twitter shareholders, according to sources, as first reported by The Post on Friday.
Musk hinted at the hostile approach in a cryptic tweet sent over the weekend that referenced Elvis Presley’s 1956 hit “Love Me Tender.”
According to sources, Musk intends to launch the tender offer for Twitter within the next 10 days. However, according to insiders, Musk appears to be having more difficulty than expected in finding backers.
Musk recently announced that he had made an offer to purchase Twitter. The billionaire is willing to pay $54.20 per share to acquire 100% of the company.
The all-cash offer will be worth approximately $43 billion to the social network company.
He also admitted that he was “not sure” if he would be able to buy Twitter, but added that if his initial offer is rejected, he has a Plan B.
Meanwhile, Twitter announced that its Board of Directors unanimously approved a limited duration shareholder rights plan in response to Musk’s unsolicited, non-binding proposal to acquire the company.
