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The rating of social media site X has skyrocketed to $44 billion, highlighting the sharp turnaround of the company’s fate as owner Elon Musk took on the role of a solid ally to President Donald Trump.
According to two people with knowledge of the issue, investors valued the platform at $44 billion earlier this month in a so-called secondary contract.
X was also working to raise fresh capital in the primary round. It aims to raise about $2 billion by selling new stocks and pay off more than $1 billion in junior debt that Musk agreed to fund the acquisition of the company known as Twitter in 2022.
Since taking over the group, Musk has loosened its platform moderation policy. This has prompted many advertisers to leave. A disclosure from Fidelity Investments in late September implies a valuation of a company that costs under $10 billion. Mask bought Twitter for $44 billion.
The new $44 billion valuation represents a rebound for Musk and the group’s investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, 8VC, Goanna Capital and Fidelity Investments. This agreement will help you set prices for future primary rounds.
X’s revenue has been declining since the acquisition of Musk, but recorded approximately $1.2 billion in adjusted revenue before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization in 2024.
Two other people with knowledge of X’s finances said there were signs of mask companies working and that revenues were improving. But more people also noted that EBITDA figures were “roughly adjusted.”
X declined to comment.
A group of seven Wall Street banks, including Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Barclays and MUFG, sells almost all of the $12.5 billion Loan Musk used to fund the 2022 acquisition of Twitter. Lenders have tried to turn X’s business around, where stock investors changed stakes on the platform.
Investor interest in loans improved in the weeks since Trump’s election victory in November, given the proximity of the new administration as the billionaire, who is the so-called government efficiency (DOGE), which aims to cut off the deficits between the president and government.
It also improved after Musk gave investors at a social media company a 25% stake in his artificial intelligence startup XAI early last year. Xai has a $45 billion valuation, and the innovative arrangements have provided new security to X lenders, boosting the platform’s valuation.
One banker close to fundraising said the upcoming primary round would help X “clear the final debt.”
Rather than offloading when selling more than $11 billion in loans in January and February, the bank agreed to give the company time to raise fresh stock or equity-like funds to pay off the remaining junior debt.
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To further boost X, groups such as Amazon have deepened their relationship with Musk’s Trump, and have recently boosted marketing spending. X recently added many brands, including Nestlé, LEGO, Pinterest and Shell, to lawsuits alleging they had previously illegally boycotted the platform.
X is diversifying beyond advertising to new revenue streams and expanding its efforts to become what Musk calls “The Everything App.” CEO Linda Jaccarino announced in January that the company will launch X Money, a digital wallet and peer-to-peer payment service, as its first partner later this year.
It also worked closely with Xai to integrate AI technology into the platform, launching the latest version of Grok 3, an AI chatbot for premium subscribers, on Monday. X plans to use AI technology developed by Xai to boost its advertising offerings and products, according to one person familiar with the issue.
