Elon Musk Faces FTC Antitrust Review on Twitter Alongside Stock Probe

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is reviewing Elon Musk’s $44 billion Twitter takeover, a person familiar with the deal said, setting up a deadline in the next month for the agency to decide whether to conduct an in-depth review of the transaction. Under US merger law, Musk is required to notify the FTC and the Justice Department of the transaction and wait at least 30 days before closing to allow an investigation into potential antitrust concerns. The FTC can ask for additional information, issuing what’s known as a second request, which would further delay closing. Antitrust experts don’t expect the deal to raise antitrust concerns. However, Open Markets -– the anti-monopoly non-profit group where Democratic FTC Chair Lina Khan got her start in antitrust –- has urged the agency to block the deal, arguing that it would give Musk too much control over free speech platforms. Musk also owns Starlink, a satellite-based internet provider operated by SpaceX, which is being used to provide internet to Ukraine. The FTC is separately probing whether Musk should have notified the agencies when he acquired a 9 percent stake in the company in March 2022. The Tesla Chief Executive Officer didn’t file paperwork with the FTC, seeking to take advantage of an exemption in the law for voting securities acquired solely for investment purposes.