Crypto Exchange Binance Confirms $500 Million Investment In Musk’s Twitter Takeover
by Arthur · October 28, 2022
Binancethe world’s largest crypto exchange, confirmed its participation as an equity investor in Elon Musk’s $44 billion deal to buy Twitter.
“We are excited to help Elon realize a new vision for Twitter. We aim to play a role in bringing social media and Web3 together to expand the use and adoption of crypto and blockchain technology,” Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao said in an email to Decrypt.
Earlier this week, CZ confirmed that Binance would stick to its earlier promise to commit $500 million to Musk’s bid to buy Twitter, stressing that the deal will provide a chance to help social media and news for Web3.
Zhao took to Twitter late Thursday to say that Binance had already wired the said amount as part of the deal.
Binance first revealed plans to support Musk’s acquisition of Twitter in an SEC filing in May this year, with the exchange’s CEO describing the move as “a small contribution to the cause” at the time.
The primary financiers who helped the Tesla and SpaceX CEO finance the deal include Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and Barclays, each committing at least $2.5 billion in debt financing for the deal, according to Forbes.
Other equity investors participating in the acquisition include Sequoia Capital, Qatar Investment Authority, and Fidelity Management & Research, among many others, per CNBC.
Musk completes Twitter takeover
After months of legal and public wrangling over the deal, Musk reportedly completed his $44 acquisition of Twitter late Thursday, triumphantly posting a “The bird is freed” tweet and promptly ousting several top executives.
Initial reporting indicates that the new owner has been quick to cut Twitter’s c-suit. Those leaving are reportedly Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal, and top lawyer Vijaya Gadde, who played a key role in the decision to ban former President Donald Trump’s Twitter account in January 2021.
Musk himself will take over as CEO, a source said Bloomberg– although it may only be a temporary role.
His next move will reportedly be to reinstate Twitter users who have been banned for life from the platform, including Trump.
Before completing the deal, Musk stated that his primary motivation for acquiring Twitter is to secure “the future of civilization.”
The goal, according to Musk, is to preserve a “common digital town square” where people of wide-ranging beliefs can debate their views without resorting to violence, instead of splintering into “far-right and far-left echo chambers.”
Other goals include fighting spambots on Twitter, a problem that can be solved by implementing blockchain-based solutions.
Bot spam is particularly prevalent in the crypto community, where fraudsters often create fake identities for influencers and other prominent figures, including Musk himself, to lure in investors.
