Published , by Donovan Erskine
Published , by Donovan Erskine
Elon Musk is one of Twitter’s most infamous users. Whether he’s influencing the crypto market, sharing news about Tesla and SpaceX, or chiming in on the latest political or social controversy, Musk is a major player in that space. He’s also been a critic of the platform’s moderation, speaking about how it doesn’t uphold the first amendment rights of users. Now, Musk may be looking to take matters into his own hand, as he’s acquired a 9.2 percent stake in Twitter (TWTR), making him the company’s largest shareholder.
It was on April 4, 2022 that we learned Elon Musk had acquired a hefty 9.2 percent stake in Twitter earlier this morning. Though Musk did not disclose how much in total he paid for the shares, CNN Business states that it would have cost him in the neighborhood of $2.9 billion USD. Twitter (TWTR) stock soared on the news of Musk’s acquisition, jumping 22 percent in value.
Though Elon Musk has yet to release an official statement or share his motivations behind the huge purchase, we can connect the dots by looking at his recent activity on the platform. On March 25, he ran a Twitter poll in which he asked, “Free speech is essential to a functioning democracy. Do you believe Twitter rigorously adheres to this principle?” More than 2 million Twitter users responded to the poll. The following day, he posted a follow-up tweet to the poll, which 75 percent of users had voted “no” on, to ask what should be done about the issue. The acquisition of 9.2 percent of the company’s stock was certainly no coincidence.
It’s important to keep in mind that although Elon Musk is now Twitter’s largest shareholder, he doesn’t own the company. That said, there’s strong potential for him to be an influence over Twitter’s business in the future. As we continue to keep up with the changes happening at Twitter, stick with Shacknews.