Elon Musk took a swipe at the board of Twitter on Monday after the social-media company adopted a “poison pill” to protect itself from the second-biggest shareholder’s US$43-billion cash buyout offer.
“Board salary will be $0 if my bid succeeds, so that’s ~$3M/year saved right there,” Mr. Musk tweeted in response to a user’s post criticizing the board.
Mr. Musk, a self-described “free speech absolutist” who has been critical of Twitter’s policies, did not elaborate on the tweet. Twitter did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Continuing his tirade against the company, Mr. Musk had launched a poll on Thursday asking his 80 million followers if “taking Twitter private at $54.20 should be up to shareholders, not the board,” to which a large majority responded “Yes.”
Later, the Tesla chief executive also tweeted “Love Me Tender,” an Elvis Presley song, after Twitter opted a plan to sell shares at a discount to prevent any attempt by shareholders to amass a stake of more than 15 per cent. Mr. Musk currently has a 9.1-per-cent stake.
Meanwhile, in a series of tweet replies, co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey called out Twitter’s board on Saturday, saying “it’s consistently been the dysfunction of the company.”
Mr. Dorsey’s statement was a reply to a tweet by venture capitalist Garry Tan that said: “The wrong partner on your board can literally make a billion dollars in value evaporate.”
Shares of Twitter were up about 4 per cent at US$46.85, still significantly below Mr. Musk’s offer of US$54.20 a share. They have risen roughly 15 per cent since Mr. Musk disclosed his stake on April 4.
Meanwhile, Twitter has also been informed by Thoma Bravo, a technology-focused private equity firm that had more than US$103-billion in assets under management as of the end of December, that it was exploring the possibility of putting together a bid.
Twitter on Friday adopted a limited-duration shareholder rights plan to protect itself from billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk's $43 billion cash takeover offer. This report produced by Jonah Green.
Reuters
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