Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) said on Friday that the US antitrust waiting period for Elon Musk’s $44 billion takeover of the social media giant had ended, meaning that the planned transaction had avoided a protracted examination.
With the expiry, the transaction is now subject to any remaining customary closing conditions, including approval by Twitter shareholders and any other regulatory approvals, according to Twitter.
Deals are submitted to the US government under antitrust legislation for consideration by either the Justice Department or the Federal Trade Commission. If any agency had made a “second request” for papers, the agreement would have faced a months-long probe.
However, Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) Chief Executive Musk said last month that the Twitter transaction was “temporarily on hold” while he sought additional information regarding the number of fraudulent accounts on the network.
Musk has acquired both stock and loan finance for the transaction.
Twitter was up nearly a half-percentage point at $40.10 per share in late morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.