Twitter shareholders on Tuesday voted to approve Tesla founder Elon Musk's $44 billion merger deal, setting them up for a court showdown in October. AFP
Twitter shareholders on Tuesday voted to approve Tesla founder Elon Musk's $44 billion merger deal, setting them up for a court showdown in October. AFP
Twitter shareholders on Tuesday voted to approve Tesla founder Elon Musk's $44 billion merger deal, setting them up for a court showdown in October. AFP
Twitter shareholders on Tuesday voted to approve Tesla founder Elon Musk's $44 billion merger deal, setting them up for a court showdown in October. AFP

Twitter shareholders vote to approve Elon Musk deal


Kyle Fitzgerald
  • English
  • Arabic

Twitter shareholders on Tuesday voted to approve Tesla founder Elon Musk's $44 billion takeover of the company, as the social media platform and the world's richest man inch closer to a hotly anticipated court battle in October.

The decision to approve Mr Musk's offer of $54.20 per share — far higher than Twitter's current share price of $42 — was widely expected. It was also largely a formality, though it clears a legal hurdle to close the sale.

The approval comes three days after the Tesla founder issued a third letter to the company to terminate the deal, citing a reported $7.75 million severance payment the tech company paid to Peiter “Mudge” Zatko, who has acted as a whistleblower on Twitter's security failures.

The letter said Twitter's payment to Mr Zatko, the company's former head of security, “cannot be cured” and therefore Mr Musk is “not required” to go through with the merger.

Speaking before a US Senate committee earlier on Tuesday, Mr Zatko said Twitter leadership failed to address security risks and that it is “over a decade” behind the best security standards in the industry.

Mr Zatko alleged the company's executives lacked the competency to address security concerns and put profits over user safety. His claims are uncorroborated and lack the same kind of documentary support that Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen provided to Congress last year.

In his whistleblower complaint, Mr Zatko said the company also misled shareholders on its security standards against spam bots.

Mr Musk has argued, without evidence, that many of Twitter's 238 million daily users are bot accounts. He had previously threatened to walk away from the $44bn deal unless the company provided proof that fewer than 5 per cent of its active users were fake accounts.

The legal battle between Mr Musk and Twitter is scheduled to go to trial on October 17 in Delaware.

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Squad

Ali Kasheif, Salim Rashid, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Ali Mabkhout, Omar Abdulrahman, Mohammed Al Attas, Abdullah Ramadan, Zayed Al Ameri (Al Jazira), Mohammed Al Shamsi, Hamdan Al Kamali, Mohammed Barghash, Khalil Al Hammadi (Al Wahda), Khalid Essa, Mohammed Shaker, Ahmed Barman, Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Al Hassan Saleh, Majid Suroor (Sharjah) Walid Abbas, Ahmed Khalil (Shabab Al Ahli), Tariq Ahmed, Jasim Yaqoub (Al Nasr), Ali Saleh, Ali Salmeen (Al Wasl), Hassan Al Muharami (Baniyas) 

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Timeline

2012-2015

The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East

May 2017

The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts

September 2021

Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act

October 2021

Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence 

December 2024

Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group

May 2025

The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan

July 2025

The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan

August 2025

Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision

October 2025

Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange

November 2025

180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE

Key developments

All times UTC 4

Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction

Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.

Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.

Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.

Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.

Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.

What are the guidelines?

Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.

Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.

Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.

Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.

Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.

Source: American Paediatric Association
Who was Alfred Nobel?

The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.

  • In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
  • Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
  • Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
BULKWHIZ PROFILE

Date started: February 2017

Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: E-commerce 

Size: 50 employees

Funding: approximately $6m

Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait

LIST OF INVITEES

Shergo Kurdi (am) 
Rayhan Thomas
Saud Al Sharee (am)
Min Woo Lee
Todd Clements
Matthew Jordan
AbdulRahman Al Mansour (am)
Matteo Manassero
Alfie Plant
Othman Al Mulla
Shaun Norris

Updated: September 13, 2022, 7:35 PM