Elon Reeve Musk has finalised his $44 billion deal to take Twitter private, putting an end to one of the most publicised and dramatic buyout sagas in recent memory.

Musk is the richest person in the world, according to both the Bloomberg Billionaires Index and Forbes’ real-time billionaires list.

Even as early as 2017, Musk indicated interest in acquiring Twitter. Musk started buying Twitter shares in January 2022, and by March had amassed a 5% position in the firm. By April, he had a 9% stake, making him the company’s largest shareholder.

In contravention of American securities rules, he failed to submit the required SEC paperwork within 10 days of his ownership crossing 5%. On April 4, when he did make his investment publicly known in an SEC 13G filing, Twitter stock saw its biggest intraday gain since its 2013 initial public offering.

Following Musk’s remarks from March, in which he questioned Twitter’s commitment to free expression and floated the idea of starting a competing social media platform, it was revealed that Musk had acquired a sizeable investment in the company.

In an effort to create a “super app” that combines messaging, payments, and commerce, Musk has pledged to reduce Twitter’s workforce and operating expenses while fostering product innovation.

Musk had first agreed to purchase Twitter for $54.20 per share in April. A few months later, he filed a lawsuit against the San Francisco-based business to cancel the agreement, claiming that the platform had misled investors and regulators about false accounts and cyber security. In an effort to pressure the billionaire to complete the transaction, the social media business retaliated and countersued, setting up a contentious court dispute and discovery process.

Musk has promised to contribute a total of $33 billion in equity.