Elon Musk, who has agreed to take Twitter Inc private in a $44 billion deal, has told potential investors he could return the social-media company to public ownership after just a few years.
According to people familiar with the matter, Mr. Musk said he plans to make an initial public offering of Twitter at least three years after buying it. The company said the deal is expected to close later this year, subject to terms including approval from Twitter shareholders and regulators.
Mr Musk, the head of Tesla Inc., is talking to investors such as private-equity firms, which could help create a $21 billion plan to help pay for the deal. The rest of the money is coming from debt. One firm considering participating is Apollo Global Management Inc., The Wall Street Journal has reported.
Private-equity firms often take the companies private with a view to fix them out of the spotlight and then go public again in five years or so. Musk’s indication that he plans to do something similar could help reassure potential investors that he will act swiftly to improve Twitter’s business operations and profitability.
He has given few details about his exact plans for the company, besides that he wants the content to be less censored in moderation. At one point he said he didn’t care if he made money on the deal. Mr Musk has a history of missing his deadlines and goals at the electric-car company Tesla.
Even though Mr. Musk is the richest man in the world, scraping together funds to seal the deal was no minor feat. Once it managed to do so, Twitter’s expected resistance subsided and both sides quickly agreed to a deal at its original offer price of $54.20 per share.