Elon Musk takes control of Twitter in $44bn deal

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The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, has completed his $44bn (£38.1bn) takeover of Twitter, according to a filing with the US government.

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Mr Agrawal and two other executives were escorted out of Twitter’s San Francisco headquarters on Thursday evening, said Reuters.

The completion of the deal brings to an end months of legal wrangling but it has prompted questions over the platform’s future direction.

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The New York Stock Exchange said on Friday that trading in Twitter’s shares had been suspended, giving the reason as “merger effective”.

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Chief financial officer Ned Segal, and the firm’s top legal and policy executive, Vijaya Gadde, are leaving alongside Mr Agrawal, according to US media reports.

Mr Musk, a self-styled “free speech absolutist”, has been critical of Twitter’s management and its moderation policies.

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They clashed over the terms of the takeover, with Mr Musk accusing Twitter of providing misleading information about the firm’s user numbers.

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He has also said he would reverse bans on suspended users, which could include former US President Donald Trump, who was excluded following the Capitol riot in January 2021.

At the time, Twitter said there was a risk Mr Trump would incite further violence. But Mr Musk has described the ban as “foolish”.

Earlier this week, Mr Musk said that he doesn’t want the platform to become an echo chamber for hate and division.

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