Unlock the publisher’s digest free
Roula Khalaf, editor -in -chief of the FT, selects her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Elon Musk’s X has collected about $ 1 billion in a new equity financing cycle which values the social media company to $ 44 billion, bringing its valuation in accordance with the price that the billionaire paid in 2022.
Musk, the majority shareholder of X, was one of those who bought the actions, according to several people familiar with the issue. Darsana Capital, an investor who bought a debt linked to Musk X redemption, and 1789 capital, a venture capital company whose partners include Donald Trump JR and invested in other muskutial companies, also participated.
The fundraising, which values X at $ 44 billion, including the debt, occurs while Musk has carried out close ties with Donald Trump and assumed a central role in the American president’s attempt to reduce the size of the federal government.
Tesla’s actions, the electric car manufacturer co-founded by Musk, have recently dropped while some consumers have avoided the brand, but certain parts of its private empire have been stimulated.
Seven banks that held $ 12.5 billion on their balance sheets in loans related to the Musk’s buy -in in 2022 from X, then known as Twitter, were able to unload most of this year, helped by the increase in debt.
Banks have been left with just over $ 1 billion in junior debt after recent transactions.
The last increase in shares will give X the money to reimburse the junior loan, according to several people on the situation. It will remove one of the most expensive loans with which X had been salted in the acquisition, a person noting that junior capital cost the company about 13% per year.
In addition, Musk also bought additional shares in the company from existing investors last year. According to public documents from the Kingdom Holding Company, a Saudi conglomerate and X Investor, Musk bought a value of $ 150 million in the company.
In recent weeks, X has also concluded another secondary market agreement, which also estimated X at $ 44 billion.
A return to the original purchase price was a symbolic target for Musk, according to an investor in X. After taking over the group, Musk softened the moderation policies of the platform and many advertisers have left, pushing the lower income.
The disclosure of Fidelity Investments, an X backer in late September involved an assessment for the company which was less than $ 10 billion.
But some groups, including Amazon, have recently increased marketing expenses, while Musk’s relationship with Trump has deepened.
According to investors, the finance of the company has also shown signs of improvement, and X displayed $ 1.2 billion in adjusted profits before interest, taxes, damping and damping in 2024. This is roughly flat with the period before taking control of Musk, although a person familiar with the question noted that the figure was subject to significant adjustments.
X’s evaluation was also considerably stimulated by Musk’s decision to grant 25% participation in its XAI artificial intelligence start-up to investors from the social media company at the start of last year. XAI has jumped to an evaluation of $ 45 billion since its creation in 2023.
X refused to comment. 1789 and Darsana refuse to comment.
Bloomberg first indicated that the equity fundraising cycle had closed.