Musk reverses board membership decision, says Twitter’s CEO

Musk reverses board membership decision, says Twitter’s CEO

CEO Parag Agrawal said Friday that Elon Musk would not join the board of Twitter Inc., a dramatic reversal that casts new doubt over Twitter’s relationship with its biggest shareholder.

The late-Sunday announcement capped a hectic week. Twitter revealed last Monday that Mr. Musk owns 9.2% of the company, he plans to join the board Tuesday.

According to Agrawal, he and the board were eager to collaborate with Mr. Musk, and felt that having him as a fiduciary “would ensure that he acts in the best interest of the company and all its shareholders.” Mr. Musk’s appointment was set to take effect on Saturday, he wrote, “but Elon announced that Saturday morning that he would not be joining the board.”

Mr. Agrawal failed to provide a reason for Mr. Musk’s decision. He added, “I believe this is for the best. We have, and always will, value input from our shareholders regardless of whether they are on our Board or not. Elon is our biggest shareholder, and we will remain open to his input.”

Mr. Parag took to his twitter handle wrote, “Elon has decided not to join our board. I sent a brief note to the company, sharing with you all here.” he also shared the note along with his tweet.

Elon has decided not to join our board. I sent a brief note to the company, sharing with you all here. pic.twitter.com/lfrXACavvk

— Parag Agrawal (@paraga) April 11, 2022

In recent premarket trading, Twitter shares fell 0.5% following the announcement, paring earlier losses of about 8% and pointing to possible losses for the stock when the market opens Monday in New York. It could undo some of the gains made by the company last week after the news of Mr. Musk’s stake broke. This was Twitter’s best weekly performance since February 2021 and one of its best ever.

The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, is known for his unpredictable behavior and business acumen. Just months into his tenure as CEO, Mr. Agrawal’s involvement in Twitter presented an unusual challenge as well as an opportunity, and the company said that it had asked him to join its board. The dynamics are likely to become even more complex now that Mr. Musk is exerting his influence from outside.