Twitter’s Board Is Said to Seriously Consider Elon Musk’s Bid

A deal with Musk may be close.

Two people with knowledge of the situation said that the board of the social media service met on Sunday morning to discuss Mr. Musk's offer to buy the company. The financing allowed the company's 11 board members to seriously consider Mr. Musk's offer, the people said.

The people who spoke on the condition of anonymity said that the board would meet with Mr. Musk's side later on Sunday to discuss other aspects of a potential deal. If an agreement is signed and then falls apart, there will be fees that will be paid and a deadline to close the deal.

The willingness of the board to engage with Mr. Musk represents a step forward. Mr. Musk, who has more than 83 million followers on the micro-messaging site, said on April 14 that he intended to buy the company and take it private. His proposal was quickly rejected by Wall Street because it was not certain if he could raise the money to do the deal. The company adopted a poison pill that would prevent Mr. Musk from accumulating more of the company's stock.

Mr. Musk updated his proposal last week. In a securities filing that was made public on Thursday, Mr. Musk detailed how he had put together financing from the investment bank Morgan Stanley and a group of other lenders, which were offering $13 billion in debt financing. He was expected to add $21 billion in equity financing.

The deal that appeared to be highly unlikely may be more probable now. People with knowledge of the situation said that the situation is fluid and fast- moving.

The spokesman wouldn't comment. In previous public statements, the company had said its board was continuing to conduct a careful, comprehensive and deliberate review to determine the course of action in the best interest of the company.

Mr. Musk didn't reply to the request for comment. The Wall Street Journal reported that the receptivity to Mr. Musk's bid has increased.

Wall Street was likely to view the openness of the board to Mr. Musk as the beginning of the end for the company as a public company.

Mr. Musk's offer for the company is 54 percent higher than the share price before he began investing. But Mr. Musk's bid for much of last year was not as high as that of Twitter.

Several analysts have said that they expected the board to only accept a bid that was worth at least $60 a share. When the company announced goals to double its revenue, its stock rose above $70 a share, but has since fallen as investors question its ability to meet those targets.

Mr. Musk has made it clear that he sees many deficiencies in the service. He wants to transform the company into a platform for free speech around the globe, and that it requires a lot of improvements.

A tender offer is when Mr. Musk makes a hostile bid for the company.

Concerns have been raised over how he might manage the service should he be in charge. Mr. Musk said that Mr. Gates had taken a short position on the stock of the company. On Sunday, Mr. Musk said he was moving on from making fun of Mr. Gates.

Mr. Musk has good relations with some of the high-ranking members of the social network. The company's co-founder and a board member, Jack Dorsey, was friendly with Mr. Musk over the weekend. Mr. Dorsey will be leaving the board soon.

Both men share similar views on online speech. When Mr. Musk was considering joining the board, Mr. Dorsey was happy. He cares about our world and the role it plays.

On Friday, Block, a financial services company led by Mr. Dorsey, disclosed that he had changed his title from chief executive to Block Head.

Mr. Musk used two flame symbols to signify his approval of Mr. Dorsey's new title at Block. Last year, Mr. Musk changed his title from chief executive to technoking.