Twitter CEO expects Musk deal to close but is preparing for other scenarios

Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal said Friday that he still expects the sale to Elon Musk to go through, but he’s continuing to run the company in case it doesn’t.

“While I expect the deal to close, we need to be prepared for all scenarios and always do what’s right for Twitter,” Agarwal said in a tweet. “I’m accountable for leading and operating Twitter, and our job is to build a stronger Twitter every day.”

Musk tweeted earlier on Friday that the deal is on hold until he finds out more details on how many fake accounts, like spam bots, are on the platform. The stock sank almost 10%, adding to a recent plunge in the company’s value. It’s now worth about $13 billion less than Musk’s agreed upon bid last month of around $44 billion.

But the Tesla CEO billionaire may not be able to easily walk away. He’d be on the hook for a $1 billion breakup fee and could face a breach of contract lawsuit that would cost him billions more, according to an earlier CNBC report.

Agarwal’s comments through a series of tweets came a day after the company said it was freezing hiring, rescinding offers and cutting costs. Two executives also left the company, including head of consumer product Kayvon Beykpour, who said Agarwal asked him to leave.

“People have also asked: why manage costs now vs after close?” Agarwal wrote. “Our industry is in a very challenging macro environment — right now. I won’t use the deal as an excuse to avoid making important decisions for the health of the company, nor will any leader at Twitter.”

Agrawal added that he will try to bring more transparency to the work Twitter is doing to improve public conversations on the platform.

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