Since Elon Musk’s acquisition in late 2022, X, formerly known as Twitter, has experienced a significant decline in value, dropping by 71%. Fidelity, a prominent investment group, assessed the situation on January 1, marking the second devaluation for X in 2023. Elon Musk initially acquired the social media giant for $44 billion with Fidelity’s substantial contribution of a $33.5 billion equity investment and additional funds secured through debt financing. The deal, concluded in October 2022, resulted in Twitter transitioning into a privately held company.
Despite requests for comment from FOX Business, both Twitter and Fidelity have not responded to the latest valuation.
Elon Musk, a vocal critic of Twitter prior to the acquisition, expressed concerns about its impact on democracy and civilization, attributing them to what he perceived as a left-wing “mind virus” spread by the platform’s leadership and employee base.
Under Musk’s leadership at X, he garnered attention by terminating a significant number of employees and adopting a firm stance toward advertisers, dismissing their concerns and threatening to distance the platform from them.
In a late November incident, Musk responded defiantly to advertisers leaving the platform, stating, “What this advertising boycott is going to do is, it is going to kill the company. And the whole world will know that those advertisers killed the company.” He also bluntly told advertisers to “go f— yourself.”
Addressing Disney CEO Bob Iger’s discussion of pulling advertising from the platform, Musk responded in a similar assertive manner, stating, “Don’t advertise. If someone is going to try and blackmail me with advertising? Blackmail me with money? Go f— yourself,” emphasizing his unwavering position on the matter.
During an interview, Musk apologized for endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory on X, acknowledging its role in fueling an advertiser exodus. These developments transpired shortly after Musk’s visit to Israel, where he toured a kibbutz attacked by Hamas terrorists and engaged in discussions with top leaders.
