Elon Musk Buys 9.2 Percent Stake in Twitter Worth $2.9 Billion [Photo]

Tesla CEO Elon Musk now owns 9.2 percent of Twitter according to a 13G filing released today.

via: Complex

Per a SEC filing on Monday, Twitter disclosed that Musk holds 9.2 percent of the social media network’s shares. He has yet to publicly acknowledge his shares in Twitter, but the SEC filing indicates he acquired the shares on March 14. When he purchased the 73,486,938 Twitter shares in mid-March, the value was just under $2.9 billion. However, following the news of Musk’s involvement, Twitter shares jumped 26 percent in pre-market trading. That means his purchase is now worth closer to $3.6 billion.

Last month, the Tesla CEO shared a poll on Twitter asking his followers if the social media network adheres to the principle of free speech. “Free speech is essential to a functioning democracy,” he wrote. “Do you believe Twitter rigorously adheres to this principle?” 70 percent of the voters chose “No,” even though current law dictates Twitter does not need to provide the right to free speech as a private entity.

“Given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy,” he added. Curiously, Musk shared the tweets AFTER he purchased the shares.

Musk has made headlines for his behavior on Twitter in the past, but mostly recently he challenged Russian President Vladimir Putin to “single combat” amid his invasion of Ukraine.

Elon’s use of Twitter has occasionally gotten the CEO into hot water. In 2018 he infamously tweeted that he had secured the funds to take Tesla private if it reached $420 a share. Eventually it emerged that he had not secured funding for the sale, and Musk was forced by the Securities and Exchange Commission to have Tesla’s lawyers pre-approve any tweets about the company’s financial health, sales, delivery numbers, and more.