Elon Musk has reportedly pledged to close his $44 billion Twitter deal by Friday, the same day he faces a court-ordered deadline to complete the acquisition.
Musk made the vow in a video conference call with bankers who are helping fund the deal, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people with knowledge of the matter.
Led by Morgan Stanley, the banks have finished putting together the final credit agreement and are in the process of signing the documentation, marking one of the last steps in providing $13 billion towards the deal.
Delaware Chancery Court Judge Kathaleen McCormick previously ordered Musk to close the deal by 5pm on Friday, October 28, warning that otherwise a new trial date would be set in Twitter’s lawsuit seeking to force the sale.
Meanwhile, Twitter staffers penned an open letter this week protesting Musk’s alleged plans to lay off up to two-thirds of the company’s employees after completing the deal.
Twitter and Musk’s lawyers were not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.
Musk has pledged to provide $46.5 billion in equity and debt financing for the acquisition, which covers the $44 billion price tag and closing costs.
Banks, including Morgan Stanley and Bank of America, have committed to provide $13 billion of debt financing to support the deal.
A group of equity investors, including Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, will pitch in with another $7.1 billion.
Musk is funding much of the remaining price tag through proceeds from the sale of Tesla shares, and loans against his remaining stake in the electric carmaker.
Twitter shares rose 2.7 percent to $52.91 in afternoon trading, closer to Musk’s offer price of $54.20.
As Musk’s deal barreled toward closing following months of dramatic twists and turns, Twitter employees are slamming his takeover and reports of planned layoffs in an open letter.
Musk plans to cut Twitter’s staff by as much as three-quarters, according to plans reported by The Washington Post.
The layoff plans coincide with previous statements from Musk that the social media company is bloated, and that its 7,500 workforce suffers from a ‘strong left-wing bias.’
Moreover, the proposal – based on leaked conversations Musk had with prospective funders of his acquisition over the past few months – would leave the company with just 2,000 employees.
In the scathing note circulated Monday, staffers called the prospective layoffs ‘reckless’ and a ‘transparent act of worker intimidation.’
An unpublished draft of the letter read: ‘Elon Musk’s plan to lay off 75% of Twitter workers will hurt Twitter’s ability to serve the public conversation.
‘A threat of this magnitude is reckless, undermines our users’ and customers’ trust in our platform, and is a transparent act of worker intimidation.’
