Elon Musk has threatened to walk away from his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter, accusing the social media company of “frustrating” requests to learn more about its user base.
In a letter filed with regulators, Mr Musk said he was authorized to conduct his own measurement of spam accounts.
The letter formalizes a dispute that has been simmering for weeks after Mr Musk declared the deal “on hold” pending further information.
Twitter has defended its estimates.
But Mr Musk said he believes spam and fake accounts account for a far larger share than the less than 5% of daily users that Twitter publicly reports.
“As a potential owner of Twitter, Mr. Musk is clearly entitled to the requested data to enable him to prepare for the transition of Twitter’s business to his ownership and to facilitate his transaction financing. To do both, he must have a complete and accurate understanding of the core of Twitter’s business model – its active user base,” attorney Mike Ringler wrote in the letter.
Analysts have said Mr Musk could use the spam accounts problem to try to renegotiate the price. Weeks of market turmoil have slashed the value of many companies, making Mr Musk’s offer of $54.20 per share to Twitter seem even more generous.
“Based on Twitter’s past conduct, and particularly the company’s recent correspondence, Mr. Musk believes the company is actively resisting and frustrating its rights to information,” the letter said.
“This is a clear material breach of Twitter’s obligations under the Merger Agreement and Mr. Musk reserves all rights arising therefrom, including his right not to consummate the Transaction and his right to terminate the Merger Agreement.”
Add Comment