Twitter shares taken off stock exchange after Elon Musk seals $44bn takeover – business live

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Donald Trump says he is happy Twitter is in ‘sane hands,’ as SEC filing confirms the Tesla billionaire has bought the social media platform with over 230m users

The SEC filing confirms that Elon Musk has taken over Twitter, and its shares have been taken off the New York stock exchange, reports our global technology editor Dan Milmo.

The merger between Twitter, Inc. and X Holdings II, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of X Holdings I, Inc., wholly owned by Elon R. Musk became effective on October 27, 2022.

Each share of Twitter, Inc. Common Stock was exchanged for USD 54.20 in cash, without interest and less any applicable withholding taxes.

The Exchange also notifies the Securities and Exchange Commission that as a result of the above indicated conditions this security was suspended from trading before market open on October 28, 2022.

Ye, formally known as Kanye West, is visible on Twitter.

The artist previously had his Twitter account locked last month amid anti-Semitic comments and outbursts he made, though it is unclear if Musk’s takeover had anything to do with Ye’s account being visible again.

Ye’s remarks have cost the artist big, with several fashion and business associated with Ye vowing to never work with him again.

Ye was also locked from Instagram, owned by Meta, due to the offensive comments and outbursts he made. The decision prompted Ye to tweet about his supposed friendship with Meta owner Mark Zuckerberg.

Updated at 12.03 EDT

Mark Cuban said today that he is happy with Musk’s Twitter takeover, calling the new owner a “ready, fire, aim entrepreneur”.

Quite the fan, Cuban shared now-viral tweets about Musk’s leadership and entrepreneurial traits shortly after the acquisition was announced:

I'm looking forward to the @elonmusk era on Twitter. He is a ready,fire,aim entrepreneur who will truly enjoy fucking with everyone who has an expectation of him. The only expectation you can have of @elonmusk is that he will flex his independence to show everyone who's in charge

It's a unique asset that he will be able to take public the next time there is an insane bull market. He just needs to grow it profitably and he will make a killing

Updated at 11.29 EDT

Shortly after Musk’s takeover was announced, a bevy of anonymous Twitter profiles celebrated the purchase by espousing slurs and arguing that Twitter’s rules on hate speech did not apply.

Musk has repeatedly said he will promote more free speech on Twitter, claiming that the current algorithm deprioritizes certain content with little regard.

But Musk has pushed back against fears that the app will be less critical against bigotry and hate under his ownership.

From the Washington Post:

A wide range of anonymous Twitter accounts celebrated Musk’s takeover and argued it meant the old rules against bigotry no longer applied.

“Elon now controls twitter. Unleash the racial slurs. K---S AND N-----S,” said one account, using slurs for Jews and Black people. “I can freely express how much I hate n-----s … now, thank you elon,” another said.

In a tweeted letter Thursday, Musk had sought to soothe advertisers worried over the moderation changes by saying he did not want it to become a “free-for-all hellscape.”

But the first hours of his purchase have shown how difficult that promise could be. One account, created this month, included a Nazi swastika as its profile picture and retweeted quotes from Musk alongside antisemitic memes. Another tweet, showing a video montage glorifying Nazi Germany with the comment, “I hear that there have been some changes around here,” was liked more than 400 times.

Read the full article here (paywall).

With the Elon Musk twitter takeover now official, reactions have started pouring in on the app--ranging from the curious to the concerned.

From American singer-songwriter Erykah Badu:

@elonmusk what’s new with Twitter ? What can we expect . And can you buy this co. And bring this back ? Please . #blackberryBabe pic.twitter.com/Y7np0DhPvH

From Houston Chronicle reporter Dwight Silverman:

I cannot share this enough. @reckless nails it.

Welcome to hell, Elon https://t.co/LKQoY7dDnJ via @Verge pic.twitter.com/Szhz8rfvc6

Here’s also a live shot from outside the Twitter HQ as the takeover was confirmed, provided by NowThis:

WATCH: Live shot outside of Twitter headquarters after Elon Musk has taken full control and ownership of the social media company. According to reports, Musk fired several executives, including CEO Parag Agrawal. https://t.co/gcXSUhbUT2

A filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission confirms that Elon Musk has taken over Twitter, and its shares have been taken off the New York stock exchange.

Former US president Donald Trump said he was happy Twitter was in “sane hands”.

Senior politicians have warned Elon Musk over content moderation on Twitter, with the EU stressing the platform will “fly by our rules” and a UK minister expressing concerns over hate speech under the billionaire’s ownership.

Our other main stories today:

The US oil giants ExxonMobil and Chevron have announced huge profits, dwarfing Shell’s $9.5bn. Texas-based ExxonMobil’s profits tripled to close to $20bn in the third quarter, nearly matching Apple’s profits, while Chevron was $11.2bn in the black. President Joe Biden blasted Exxon for making “more money than God” in the summer.

Profits at the world’s biggest oil companies have soared to nearly £150bn so far this year as Russia’s war on Ukraine pushed up energy prices, according to estimates from analysts.

The German economy surprised with growth of 0.3% in the July to September quarter, defying fears of a recession. It eked out 0.1% growth in the previous quarter. However, annual inflation in Europe’s biggest economy jumped to 11.6% last month, with food prices up 20%.

Pre-tax profits at NatWest Group remained flat between July and September at £1.1bn, amid a worsening economic outlook and a cost of living squeeze on its customers, as the bank predicted UK house prices would fall by 7% next year.

Airline revenues at British Airways’ owner have returned to pre-Covid levels, the group has announced, as it increased its profit forecasts despite a summer of disruption.

Rail users have plenty of horror stories about their experiences and the train operator Avanti is on a deadline to fix its problems.

The UK’s biggest gas storage site has been brought back in time for what could be one of the tightest winters for years for energy suppliers trying to meet demand.

I am now handing over to our US team. Thank you for reading. – JK

Updated at 10.11 EDT

The SEC filing confirms that Elon Musk has taken over Twitter, and its shares have been taken off the New York stock exchange, reports our global technology editor Dan Milmo.

The merger between Twitter, Inc. and X Holdings II, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of X Holdings I, Inc., wholly owned by Elon R. Musk became effective on October 27, 2022.

Each share of Twitter, Inc. Common Stock was exchanged for USD 54.20 in cash, without interest and less any applicable withholding taxes.

The Exchange also notifies the Securities and Exchange Commission that as a result of the above indicated conditions this security was suspended from trading before market open on October 28, 2022.

Former US president Donald Trump said today he was happy Twitter was in “sane hands” as Elon Musk finalised the $44bn takeover, but did not say whether he would return to his account on the platform that banned him.

Trump said he thought his own Truth Social media platform “looks and works better.”

“I LOVE TRUTH,” Trump wrote in a post on his platform. Trump was banned from Twitter after the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. Musk has said he would reinstate Trump’s account, but Trump previously said he would not return.

Updated at 09.33 EDT

Here’s our full story on reactions from senior politicians to the Twitter takeover.

The EU’s internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton, wrote on the platform on Friday that “in Europe, the bird will fly by our rules”, in response to Musk’s earlier tweet saying “the bird is freed” in apparent confirmation that he had bought the business. The EU is introducing the digital services act, which includes provisions for removal of illegal content including hate speech.

The UK government flagged its own concerns on Friday, as the environment secretary, Thérèse Coffey said it would be “concerning” if a relaxation of content moderation led to a proliferation on hate speech on the platform.

“I think that would be concerning and it’s important that people have these platforms [and] use them responsibly rather than to promulgate hate speech,” she told Sky News. Coffey added that the online safety bill, a landmark piece of legislation tackling online hate speech, will return to parliament next week. However, it is understood that the bill will remain on pause after the government delayed its passage again this week.

One internet safety campaigner said on Friday that the deal could “unravel” Twitter’s work on improving the platform, after reports that Musk has already fired the company’s head of legal policy, trust and safety, Vijaya Gadde.

As the deal is finalised, Musk tweeted in the last hour:

🎶 let the good times roll 🎶

Twitter has filed for a delisting of its shares, as the $44bn takeover by Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, is finalised.

Documents filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday show an application for the shares to be withdrawn from the New York stock exchange, as its new owner takes the company private.

Updated at 08.55 EDT

Researcher Joan Donovan recently looked at why the super-rich are buying social media sites? From Trump to Kanye and Musk.

Tech CEOs have become the most crucial political gatekeepers in modern media history. Not by running for office – a cliche for today’s moneyed elite – but by using social media ownership as a proxy for political influence.

It’s a trend years in the making. From the political largess of former Facebook executives like Sheryl Sandberg and Joel Kaplan to the metapolitics of Peter Thiel, tech titans have long adopted an inside/outside playbook for conducting politics by other means.

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