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‘Dogecoin CEO’ Elon Musk Bows Out of Twitter’s $44B Deal

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Dogecoin proponent Elon Musk has reportedly decided to terminate his agreement to purchase the social media giant according to a new filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC].

The tech billionaire was apparently frustrated over Twitter’s refusal to disclose complete data on spam bots and fake accounts, as negotiations dragged on.

Back in April, Musk initially offered to buy Twitter, prompting the company’s board of directors to adopt a “poison pill” plan in a last-minute attempt to block the deal. The move generated quite an uproar.

Following the backlash, the social media platform made a completed u-turn by agreeing to the $44 billion buyouts, which Musk called his “best and final” offer.

But midway through, the tech mogul became increasingly dissatisfied with Twitter’s lack of response and even announced that the deal can not go ahead unless the platform fully disclosed the requested data.

Twitter on its part went ahead by unanimously recommending that shareholders vote in favor of the deal and began laying off employees in the preparation for the merger.

Things hit rock bottom when Musk accused Twitter of breaching the contract and expressed displeasure over the latter’s unwillingness to divulge the actual number of fake accounts on the platform.

As news of Musk’s official withdrawal broke out, Twitter responded that it would take legal course to enforce the deal at the agreed price and terms. Confirming the same, chairman Bret Taylor wrote,

The Twitter Board is committed to closing the transaction on the price and terms agreed upon with Mr. Musk and plans to pursue legal action to enforce the merger agreement. We are confident we will prevail in the Delaware Court of Chancery.

As of now, Elon Musk has not responded to the deal termination.

Dogecoin Saw No Major Price Uptick

The latest announcement did not have any significant impact on the coin’s price action except for a marginal dip of 3%. At press time, Dogecoin was trading at $0.06, a 1% rise in the last 24 hours.

Recently, Elon Musk’s The Boring Company [TBC] transportation system in Las Vegas accepted Dogecoin for its rides, TronWeekly reported. Musk replied to the tweet saying, “Supporting Doge wherever feasible.”

Prior to that, DOGE along with its rival Shiba Inu was enabled by BitPay’s payment module where users can pay for their food deliveries from Uber Eats and DoorDash.

Jack Dorsey Misspells Solana; Solana Changes Twitter Name to Solano

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Solana’s network may be smashed by outages and safety ratings, but words will never harm it. It also has a good sense of humor. After Jack Dorsey misspelled the cryptocurrency’s name in a Twitter chat, the Layer-1 blockchain has humorously renamed itself, Solano.

Dorsey, a well-known Bitcoin maximalist, has consistently dismissed all other cryptocurrencies and chains as inferior and unreliable.

On Friday, the Twitter co-founder unveiled Block subsidiary TBD’s ambition to construct Web5, an “extra decentralized” platform built on top of the Bitcoin blockchain to address Web3’s shortcomings in securing users’ privacy and personal data, according to Dorsey.

Web3 is a shorthand term for the internet’s next generation, which is based on blockchains.

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Jack Dorsey Misspells Solana; Solana Changes Twitter Name to Solano 2

Dorsey points out single-point failures of Ethereum and Solana

Dorsey particularly mentioned Web3’s existing reliance on blockchains with single points of failure, such as Ethereum and Solana, when expressing the necessity for a so-called “Web5”. However, he spelled Solana incorrectly as “Solano.”

Solana couldn’t pass up the chance to make the call-out a viral moment. It altered its Twitter display name to Solano shortly after Dorsey’s remark on Friday. Crypto Twitter instantly embraced the chain’s embrace of Dorsey’s diss, with many now referring to it as “Solano” to keep the joke going.

Anatoly Yakovenko, a co-founder of SOL, is notorious for not holding back when speaking in favor of the company. The blockchain is still referred to by its former name on SOL’s website, but it will be interesting to watch how long Solana keeps the name change on Twitter.

Here’s How An Anonymous User’s Claim of Telegram Exploit Was Nullified

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According to Telegram, the anonymous account’s allegations are “baseless” and meant to “get users to download malware.” 

An unknown person attracted the attention of the crypto community this week by claiming to disclose the wrongdoings of notable crypto influencers and top projects in the sector.

The putative whistleblower, who goes by the Twitter handle “Adyingnobody,” has threatened to “tear a wedge in the entire community” by revealing Telegram chats obtained through a previously unknown flaw in the messaging program. They claimed to have evidence of everything from frauds and rug pulls to murder, theft, and sexual assault in a thread.

The whistleblower thanked Telegram for the exploit

Because of the gravity of the allegations, the anonymous person attracted the attention of the crypto Twitter community, moving from zero to 38,000 followers in a matter of hours.

The Ethereum wallet address shown in the person’s Twitter bio has also received 43 transactions, which could be tips from others who want a sneak peek at what they’re planning to reveal.

Regardless of the claims, worried members of the community turned to Twitter to urge people to exercise caution and vigilance while dealing with the supposed whistleblower. If we ignore their spectacular claims, the bottom link simply “download a zip file” and “sign a contract,” according to Twitter user Kapluie.

This is a “hacky sounding item,” according to the Twitter user, who advises against downloading it. While it’s possible that the claims are accurate, Twitter user Cryptonator1337 cautioned that anyone downloading files from the anonymous account should be cautious. 

Apart from the two, Twitter user Zugged pointed out that Adyingnobody’s claims were false, calling the deed a “publicity stunt.” Zugged sent a link to a list of Telegram’s flaws, emphasizing that none of them are equivalent to what Adyingnobody claims to have exploited.

The claims were publicly responded to by Telegram. The conduct could be an attempt to “get consumers to download malware.”

Binance extends its expensive arm to Elon Musk

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Musk’s $44 billion Twitter acquisition was aided by a number of companies and individuals. Binance was one of the companies involved. This was revealed via a Schedule 13D form submitted by the firm with the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC].

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The takeover of Twitter by Elon Musk has been a hot issue in the previous several weeks. Musk has been generating news for a variety of reasons, including conjecture about what he would do with his own version of Twitter and the addition of prospective cryptocurrencies. While Musk has received help from the crypto sector on several occasions, the most recent one is quite costly. Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, is said to be investing $500 million in Twitter.

Elon Musk went on to say that he has raised $7.14 billion in order to purchase Twitter. Apart from the bank financing, Musk needed to raise $21 billion in equity to complete the acquisition.

Apart from Binance, equity backers included Sequoia Capital, which contributed $800 million. The investment firm VyCapital, based in Dubai, is expected to contribute $700 million. Elon Musk received the largest investment from Oracle co-founder Lawrence Ellison, who put in $1 billion. The Lawrence J. Ellison Revocable Trust was funded by him. Musk was also required to file this document with the SEC because all of the entities own more than 5% of Twitter’s stock.

The total amount of equity commitments stated in the filing is approximately $5.2 billion. According to the filing, Saudi Arabian billionaire HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud (Kingdom) has chosen to keep 34,948,975 shares, subject to certain conditions.

Binance’s small contribution to the cause

As the entire community was taken aback by this unusual collaboration, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao moved to Twitter to express his gratitude. CZ claimed that the exchange platform was contributing a tiny amount to the cause.

There were other rumours flying around. Several of them suggested that Binance Coin [BNB] and Musk’s favourite cryptocurrency, Dogecoin [DOGE], be added to Twitter.

Dogecoin Rallies By 33% After Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover

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On 25th April, Dogecoin registered a spike of 33% after news broke of Twitter accepting Elon Musk’s $44 billion buyout offer to make the social platform private. Musk has been a major driving force for the meme-based cryptocurrency, often causing a ripple effect in the token’s price with just a single tweet,

The latest development made Doge’s price shoot up to $0.1673 on 25th April, up 26%, to extend its gain after rallying 7% earlier in the day.

Following the groundbreaking takeover, there have been widespread online speculations that a plan to integrate dogecoin into the platform is imminent.

Earlier this month, Musk, in a series of tweets announced buying a 9.2% stake in Twitter and proposed changes to the platform’s subscription service Twitter Blue, saying it could possibly be adding Doge as a payment option for the service.

After rejecting a Twitter board seat, Musk put forward his intention to buy the platform on April 14. Before Musk secured funding, the board was expected to reject his proposal and launched a poison pill defense on April 15, a move that is designed to prevent hostile takeovers. 

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Dogecoin is now the 10th largest cryptocurrency by market cap

The meme cryptocurrency was originally created as a joke in 2013, but it has emerged as the 10th-biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, according to CoinMarketCap. Following Musk’s acquisition, Crypto Twitter was rife with memes and parodies.

One of them termed it “A Big win for free speech and for Doge”. Some users went into creative mode by drawing caricatures of the meme coin’s dog mascot superimposed with that of Twitter’s bird logo. Others proclaimed it as “one step closer to the global adoption of Dogecoin as the currency of earth”

Even the co-founder of the social media platform, Jack Dorsey endorsed Elon Musk’s Twitter purchase quoting, “This Is the Right Path and the “closest thing we have to a global consciousness.”

Musk has been a huge proponent of Dogecoin, going so far as to call himself the “Dogefather” in a tweet last April. When he tweeted last December that Tesla would be accepting Dogecoin as payment for branded merchandise, its price increased 33% from about 16 cents to 21 cents, according to CoinGecko.

Twitter Might Be Rethinking Elon Musk’s Offer

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Elon Musk’s buyout attempt for Twitter is allegedly being reconsidered by the social media platform’s board of directors. According to the Wall Street Journal, the purchase may be completed this week.

Musk has offered $43 billion for the acquisition. On April 24, the two parties apparently discussed the acquisition’s specifics, and some progress has been made. According to sources, there are still some obstacles to be overcome, but the deal appears to be moving forward.

Mr. Musk has previously stated that he is considering making a tender offer to direct his offer to shareholders.

Even if he were to win considerable shareholder support in a tender offer that is far from certain, he would still need to get through the company’s poison pill, a legal move that essentially prevents him from increasing his holding to 15% or higher.

The raging interest in acquiring Twitter

There is, however, no assurance that an agreement will be reached between Musk and Twitter. Musk isn’t the only one interested in buying Twitter; other companies have expressed interest in acquiring the social media network in recent weeks.

Musk has stated that if and when the acquisition is completed, the board of directors’ salary will be null.

The agreement has sparked a lot of debate and criticism. Musk has stated that his purpose for purchasing the platform is to encourage free expression, but many fear that it would further polarise an already polarised site.

Some fear that Musk’s acquisition may result in a mass exodus from the corporation. This might have a huge influence as a platform that acts as a rapid voice to the public for politicians and other important persons.

The announcement has obviously had a significant impact on Twitter’s shares. It was pushed to new highs following Musk’s announcement but has subsequently fallen.

Overall, the stock has increased year over year. However, it was at a low point at the start of 2022.

Musk’s acquisition accounted for a large portion of the stock’s gain, which boosted the price to $48 and has remained there since. The stock continues to fall, putting further pressure on the board members to assuage shareholder criticism.

Stripe and Twitter launches crypto payouts in USDC via Polygon

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On April 22, Payments startup Stripe announced crypto payouts with USDC, over the Polygon network, enabling a select group of creators on Twitter to receive crypto payments via the Stripe Connect platform. As stated in the blog, Twitter already pays creators using Connect from the platform’s monetization products, including Ticketed Spaces and Super Follows.

With the addition of crypto payouts, the social media platform will provide an option for creators to have their earnings paid out to a cryptocurrency wallet. Stripe said it will handle all crypto-related complexity and operations. Creators on Twitter will be able to receive payments initially in the stablecoin USD Coin.

The payment processor claimed it chose the Polygon network for its low fees, speed, integration with Ethereum, and broad wallet compatibility [including MetaMask, Coinbase Wallet, and Rainbow].

“Creators and freelancers who opt to be paid in crypto will pass through Stripe’s normal onboarding flows. It will perform comprehensive KYC, and the flow will dynamically adapt as cryptocurrency regulations evolve. Creators can easily manage their account details, track earnings in real-time, and see upcoming payouts with the Stripe Express app.”

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Stripe and Twitter launches crypto payouts in USDC via Polygon 7

Once creators get their earnings, they can hold their balance on Polygon, or choose to bridge to Ethereum and exchange it for another currency, the blog read.

Recently Polygon unveiled the Green Manifesto, pledging $20 million to mitigate the ecosystem’s carbon footprint as the crypto industry continues to face criticism over energy usage. Stripe too set up a new fund this month to ramp up carbon dioxide removal technologies.

Stripe’s big bet for crypto adoption

The move reflects the firm’s renewed interest in crypto. The fintech giant began recruiting crypto talent last year and raised $600 million in a fundraising round at a $95 billion valuation. The firm processed $640 billion in payments in 2021, a 60% increase from a year earlier.

In March, it teamed up with digital-asset exchanges FTX and Blockchain.com with online payments and customer verification.

Having said that, Stripe plans to add support for other cryptocurrencies beyond USD Coin and provide access to crypto payments in more than 120 countries by the end of 2022, signaling its intention to expand the adoption of digital assets.

Elon Musk Teases Dogecoin Payment Option On Twitter

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Ever since Dogecoin’s evangelist, Elon Musk became Twitter’s largest shareholder, the tech billionaire posted ideas, sought opinions, and conducted poll surveys all of which aimed at revamping the platform. One which rightfully stood out is the proposal to add DOGE as a payment option, sending the crypto community into a tizzy.

Musk, a well-known backer of the meme coin, managed to pump the DOGE price for a brief period of time by featuring Dogecoin’s Shiba Inu dog mascot in the “Cyber Rodeo” event during the launch of Tesla’s new gigafactory.

In addition to that, he said that Tesla is working on futuristic charging stations where users can pay in DOGE. Musk’s support helped the asset to reach among the coveted top ten largest digital assets by market cap.

The billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX who now owns 9.2% of Twitter is a prolific Twitter user and has a magnetic effect on markets through his tweets. On 5th April, Elon Musk was appointed to Twitter’s board of directors and said he looks forward to working with the board to make “significant improvements to Twitter in the coming months.”

Elon Musk on his mission to “shake things up”

Musk, on Sunday, focused his attention on the social media giant’s first subscription service Twitter Blue. He suggested that the platform’s subscribers deserve an “authentication checkmark”, and a host of other features and perks, including bookmark folders, undo tweet option, and reader mode, among others.

In a series of tweets on 9 April, Elon Musk suggested there should be no ads and that the subscription price should be affordable.

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Just like Twitter announced its ETH tipping feature on the platform, Dogecoin’s founder Billy Markus also called for a similar feature for DOGE a few months back. Now after Musk hinted at a possible integration, Markus rallied behind the proposal saying that “this is good for dogecoin” in his tweet.

Many in the Doge Army is expectedly waiting for Musk to finally add the coin to Twitter as a tipping feature or integrate the cryptocurrency in some way or the other. With Musk now on board, this looks very much possible.

Elon Musk is now Twitter’s largest shareholder with a 9.2% stake worth around $3B!

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Tesla CEO and Dogecoin proselyter Elon Musk has become the largest shareholder in the social media giant Twitter as per SEC filings. Musk is now the owner of 73,486,938 Twitter shares, which represents a 9.2% passive stake, in accordance with the Securities and Exchange Commission 13G filing released on 4th April.

But what is meant by the passive stake?

A passive stake is when investors were bidding shares higher on the anticipation that this could lead to something more.

Based on Twitter’s closing price on Friday, the stake is valued at $2.89 billion. The doge proponent, known for throwing unique teasers before a major event, went on a rant on Twitter’s failure to adhere to free speech, a few days ago. He then asked his 80 million followers “what should be done?”

As usual, Elon Musk’s tweet raked in more than 330k likes with one user even asking him to buy the platform and change the bird logo to a doge! which doesn’t sound far-fetched though since Musk is now likely to play a bigger role being the major stakeholder.

About a month ago, Musk also said he was planning to build a new social media platform. Following the news, Twitter shares have risen by more than 25% in the premarket. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said Monday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” said,

“Elon Musk could try to take a more aggressive stance here on Twitter. This eventually could lead to some sort of buyout. This makes sense given what Musk has at least been talking about, at least from a social media perspective.”

Elon Musk’s Doge to the moon?

Musk recently posted a meme video on DOGE in response to a tweet about Bitcoin miners by Brett Winton, Director of Research at Ark Invest. For a better context, Winton has shared a joke featuring a brief conversation between someone who understands Bitcoin and mining and someone who does not know that “miners” are hardware.

Elon Musk responded by posting a video about Dogecoin, saying that it “explains everything”. The video showed a Shiba Inu dog [a DOGE symbol] riding a rocket which symbolizes the meme coin overtaking Bitcoin and other major cryptos by market cap.

Well, in fact, it did turn into reality, albeit for a short time. Doge tokens responded briefly by a 10% rise at $0.155, just minutes after the reports of Musk’s Stake began circulating. Since then, the asset has retraced slightly and is trading at $0.152, at press time.

Ethereum tipping is now available on Twitter

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Twitter has chosen to accept Ethereum (ETH) addresses to be added to its site so that people can offer tips and demonstrate backing for a Twitter user’s thoughts. This follows after the microblogging site included Bitcoin transactions to its Tips Jar function a few months ago. Jane Manchun Wong, a reverse engineering expert, stated in November that Twitter was focusing on integrating ETH wallets.

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The procedure of registering an ETH wallet address has been simplified, as users who consent to Twitter’s modified tipping policy can replicate another’s Bitcoin or Ethereum address and enter it into whichever wallet they choose. The update was revealed on Wednesday, 16, February 2022, through a tweet from the social media site’s official support handle.

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In a report, Twitter’s Lead Product Manager of Creator Monetisation, Johnny Winston, stated,

“We’re continuing to expand ways to get paid on Twitter, which includes more choices for creators and fans who want to use crypto. We’re excited to add the ability for anyone to add their ETH Address to Tips.”

It’s important to bear in mind that it’s unsure if Twitter Tip Jar will allow other Ethereum-based tokens, such as ERC-20 tokens and stablecoins, or if it would limit to ETH for the meantime.

Ethereum wallets not the only new feature to the Tip Jar

The blog read that users can link their transaction information for third-party providers such as Venmo, Razorpay, or Cash App to their Twitter Tip Jar account, which was first established in September. Anyone interested in paying a Twitter user for their knowledge can do so. However, Ethereum wallets aren’t the only new feature that Twitter’s Tip Jar service supports.

Twitter has recently added Paytm as a mode of payment for its Tips Jar function. Users can press the Tips symbol on any profile with the function activated to be redirected to the app and make the transaction. Furthermore, users would be able to transfer money through UPI, credit and debit cards, and internet banking, among other options, now that Paytm has been added as a payment provider.

The inclusion of Ethereum wallets to the renowned social media network signifies a strengthening relationship between cryptocurrency and the microblogging site in terms of crypto acceptance. At the time of writing, Ethereum (ETH) was priced at $2,901.89 and had plunged by 8.39%.