UPDATE: 3:11 P.M.
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Buyout firm Thoma Bravo LP has contacted Twitter Inc to express interest in putting together an acquisition offer that would rival Tesla Inc Chief Executive Elon Musk’s $43 billion bid, people familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Thoma Bravo, a private equity firm that had more than $103 billion in assets under management as of the end of December, has informed Twitter that it is exploring the possibility of putting together a bid, the sources said.
It is not clear how much Thoma Bravo would be prepared to offer and there is no certainty that such a rival bid will materialize, the sources cautioned, asking not to be identified because the matter is confidential.
A Thoma Bravo spokesperson declined to comment while Twitter representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The New York Post reported on Thursday that Thoma Bravo was considering a bid for Twitter.
(Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis and Krystal Hu; Editing by Sandra Maler)
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ORIGINAL STORY:
(Reuters) -Twitter Inc on Friday adopted a limited-duration shareholder rights plan to protect itself from billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk’s $43 billion cash takeover offer.
Musk made the bid on Wednesday in a letter to the board of Twitter- the micro-blogging platform that has become a global means of communication for individuals and world leaders – and it was made public in a regulatory filing on Thursday.
After his TED talk on Thursday, Musk hinted at the possibility of a hostile bid in which he would bypass Twitter’s board and put the offer directly to its shareholders, tweeting: “It would be utterly indefensible not to put this offer to a shareholder vote.”
Under the plan, also known as a ‘poison pill’ strategy to resist a bid from a potential acquirer, the rights will become exercisable if anyone acquires ownership of 15% or more of Twitter’s outstanding common stock in a transaction not approved by the Board.
The rights plan will expire on April 14, 2023, Twitter said.
(Reporting by Arunima Kumar and Kannaki Deka in Bengaluru; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Franklin Paul)
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