Wilson Sonsini, Simpson Thacher, Skadden, Davis Polk act on takeover of Twitter by Elon Musk
Wilson Sonsini, Simpson Thacher, Skadden, Davis Polk act on takeover of Twitter by Elon Musk
The all-cash deal was valued at US$ 44 billion
In one of the biggest deals, technology billionaire Elon Musk has acquired social media giant Twitter with shares valued at $54.20.
Expected to close this year, the transaction is subject to satisfaction of the customary closing conditions, including the regulatory approvals and Twitter stockholders' approval.
Earlier, before accepting the private bid by Musk, Twitter's board had tried to thwart the takeover. The business magnate had previously acquired a 9 percent stake in Twitter, becoming the largest shareholder in the social networking service.
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett represented Twitter.
While the team at Wilson Sonsini was led by Katharine Martin (Chair of Wilson Sonsini's board) along with a team of 30 partners, the Simpson Thacher team included Alan Klein, Anthony Vernace, Katherine Krause and Izaak Lustgarten (M&A).
Musk was advised by the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. The team was led by corporate partner Michael Ringler along with Sonia Nijjar and Dohyun Kim.
Meanwhile, Davis Polk & Wardwell represented a group of financial services companies, including multinational investment bank Morgan Stanley, which provided debt financing for the proposed transaction.
The Davis Polk finance team included partner James A. Florack, counsel Sanders Witkow and associates Phoebe Jin and Jeffrey Hon.
