Musk offers to end legal battle and pay $44 billion to buy Twitter

Elon Musk has dropped his legal battle by offering to withdraw from buying Twitter in his original $44bn (£38bn) bid for the social media platform.

The Tesla CEO made the proposal in a letter to Twitter, which the company disclosed in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday.

The proposal comes two weeks before Twitter’s lawsuit trying to force Musk to complete the deal goes to trial in Delaware Chancery Court.

Twitter said in a statement that it intends to close the deal at $54.20 a share after receiving a letter from Musk.

Twitter’s stock, which was suspended for most of the day pending news, resumed trading late Tuesday, surging nearly 22% to $51.80.

Musk’s proposal is the latest twist in the high-profile saga of one of the world’s richest men and one of the most influential social media platforms.

Much of the drama took place on Twitter itself, with Mr. Musk, who has more than 100 million followers, lamenting the company’s failure to live up to its potential as a platform for free speech.

Musk will complete the merger signed in April if the Delaware Chancery Court “immediately stays” Twitter’s lawsuit against him and suspends the original lawsuit, Musk’s lawyers said in a letter disclosed Monday in a securities filing. Scheduled to start in two weeks.