Elon Musk Is Going To Buy Twitter At The Original Price

Not long after the deal was made, Musk started expressing concern that Twitter had a bigger problem with bots and fake accounts than they had initially let on, which would mean the real user numbers (and therefore the value of the company) was lower than the $54.20 per share price he had offered. The deal was set up so that if Musk pulled out due to buyer’s remorse, he would have to pay a $1 billion penalty fee.

The bot issue dragged on, with Musk unhappy with the way that Twitter claimed to measure real users, and Twitter standing by their numbers. Twitter’s former security chief came forward alleging that the bot numbers were indeed inaccurate, which Twitter disputed. By early August, Twitter filed a lawsuit in Delaware chancery court to hold Musk to the original deal terms. That suit was supposed to move forward next week in court.

The day before the letter to Twitter announcing his plans to move forward with original deal, Musk seemed occupied with other interests, such as the war in Ukraine.