Musk Takes 9% Stake In Twitter To Become Top Shareholder

April 4 (Reuters) – Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) top boss Elon Musk revealed a 9.2% stake in Twitter Inc (TWTR.N), worth nearly $3 billion, likely making him the biggest shareholder in the micro-blogging site and triggering a more than 20% rise in its shares.

Musk’s move comes close on the heels of his tweet that he was giving a “serious thought” to building a new social media platform, while questioning Twitter’s commitment to free speech.

A prolific Twitter user, Musk has over 80 million followers since joining the site in 2009 and has used the platform to make several announcements, including teasing a go-private deal for Tesla that landed him in regulatory scrutiny.

Of late, however, he has been critical of the social media platform and its policies, saying the company is undermining democracy by failing to adhere to free-speech principles.

None of the companies, including Donald Trump’s Truth Social, Twitter competitors Gettr and Parler and video site Rumble, have come close to matching the reach and popularity of the mainstream platforms so far.

Reporting by Jahnavi Nidumolu and Bhargav Acharya in Bengaluru; Editing by Lincoln Feast.

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