Binance chips in $500m of Elon Musk’s $44bn for Twitter takeover
Crypto exchange Binance has been revealed as the latest backer of Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter.
The trading platform is understood to have ploughed a massive $500m into the Tesla chief’s $44 billion war chest to snap up the global social media giant.
It is believed Musk has secured equity commitments to the tune of $7.1bn from several sources, adding Binance’s contribution to those of Prince Alwaleed of Saudi Arabia and Oracle founder Larry Ellison.
Commenting on the investment news, Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao said: “We’re excited to be able to help Elon realise a new vision for Twitter. We hope to be able to play a role in bringing social media and web3 together and broadening the use and adoption of crypto and blockchain technology.”
Binance’s contribution came to light after it was named in a file made by Elon Musk with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Earlier today, Musk filed an amended general statement of the Twitter acquisition, declaring an aggregate of $7.2 billion in new financing commitments relating to the merger.
Binance appeared as one of 18 co-investors in the acquisition alongside other significant cryptocurrency businesses like Sequoia Capital Fund and Fidelity Investments.
Sequoia has ploughed in $800m, and VyCapital $700m. The Lawrence J Ellison Revocable Trust is the largest investor with a $1 billion contribution, making Binance the fourth-biggest investor.
Crypto AM columnist Nigel Green – CEO of deVere Group – said the move “underscores once again that the cryptocurrency ecosystem is increasingly a part of the mainstream global financial system”.
“In addition, it highlights how well-resourced digital asset-orientated organisations now are, which can be largely attributed to the growing institutional investment in crypto,” he added.
“I believe the move cements the inevitability of cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin and Ethereum, which are to be the native monetary system of the internet as we know it now, and even more as we move towards web 3.0.”