By
Godfrey Benjamin
April 17th, 2024
The move by Changpeng Zhao and the Binance exchange to fund Elon Musk’s visions for Twitter is a very ambitious one.
Elon Musk’s takeover of social media giant Twitter Inc (NYSE: TWTR) has drawn a concerted effort from a number of investors as shown in a filing lodged with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday. According to the updated Schedule 13D filing, Binance exchange, the world’s largest trading platform is bankrolling the acquisition bid with the sum of $500 million as one of the equity shareholders in the new entity.
Schedule 13D is a document that must be filed by a firm when it acquires more than a 5% stake in a public company, and this particular filing shows many industry investors are aligned with Elon Musk’s plans for the social media outfit. The acquisition bid is pegged around $44 billion and Musk hopes to take the company private for at least 2 to 3 years after which a public listing may be reconsidered.
Besides Binance exchange, Andreessen Horowitz also committed $400 million to the acquisition bid while Sequoia Capital Fund, L.P. dropped a massive $800 million. The biggest equity contribution as shown by the filing was the $1 billion from Lawrence J. Ellison Revocable Trust while the duo of A.M. Management & Consulting and Litani Ventures contributed the cheapest funds each at $25 million.
The bid to return Twitter to a free speech narrative has been trending since Elon Musk shared his broad plans for the company earlier in April. That Binance is amongst those funding this acquisition is not surprising, seeing the crypto ecosystem that the Changpeng Zhao-led company represents is all about self-freedom as it relates to personal finances.
In a tweet responding to the update about the trading platform’s contribution to acquiring the social media giant, Zhao simply said the outfit’s gesture is “A small contribution to the cause,” a statement that aligns greatly with the exchange’s tenets.
A small contribution to the cause. https://t.co/xD9XZxOWfL
— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) May 5, 2022
Binance and Its Strategic Investments
The move by Changpeng Zhao and the Binance exchange to fund Elon Musk’s visions for Twitter is a very ambitious one, such that it can position the trading platform as one of the pioneers of a world where everyone’s right to freedom of expression is supported.
While there has been a number of skepticism about Binance’s involvement with some users suggesting the exchange might be the next in line for the billionaire Tesla owner to shine on his radar, Binance has been known to be making a series of well-thought-out investments in recent times.
With the commitment of about $100 million to bootstrap new startups in France, the exchange was recently granted a license to operate in business in the European nation, a gesture that signifies its investments paid off in the end. The future success of Twitter will also determine the success of Binance with respect to these investments, however, considering the success Elon Musk has recorded with Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) and SpaceX, the chances of success are also high with the new venture.