Elon Musk offers to buy Twitter for $54.20 a share, so it can be ‘transformed as private company’

Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk attends the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, China August 29, 2019.

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After revealing a 9.2% stake in the company, Musk offered to buy it for $54.20 a share.

I invested in the company as I believe in its potential to be the platform for free speech around the globe and I believe free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy, Musk wrote in a letter sent to the Chairman.

The social media company needs to go private because it can't thrive or serve free speech in its current state, according to Musk.

I am offering to buy all of the stock in the company for $54.20 per share in cash, a 50% premium over the day before I began investing, and a 38% premium over the day before my investment was publicly announced.

After closing at $45.85 a share on Wednesday, the shares of the social media company jumped 12% in premarket trading.

On April 4, Musk disclosed his stake in the company. He got a seat on the company's board of directors before reversing his plans.

The social media giant has been criticized by the CEO of the company publicly, and last month he asked people on the social media platform if the company abides by free speech principles. He said he was thinking about building a new social media platform.

Since the start of the month, shares of the company have risen by 18.5%, but have seensawed in recent weeks. The value of the company is about $43 billion.

The news caused the stock to fall 1%.

The letter Musk sent was disclosed in the securities filing.

I believe that free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy and that's why I invested in the platform.

The company will not thrive or serve this societal imperative in its current form since I made my investment. The company needs to be private.

I am offering to buy 100% of the company for $54.20 per share in cash, a 54% premium over the day before I began investing, and a 38% premium over the day before my investment was publicly announced. I would need to rethink my position as a shareholder if my offer is not accepted.

It has extraordinary potential. I will open it.

Musk is the CEO of the company.