INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
By Dana HullElon Musk scrapped his plan for taking Tesla Inc
private, more than two weeks after blindsiding employees and investors with the idea via a bombshell tweet.
In a blog post published late
Friday, the company’s chairman, CEO and largest shareholder said he had met with Tesla’s board of directors and “let them know that I
believe the better path is for Tesla to remain public
The Board indicated that they agree.”
The decision is a stunning reversal after Musk shocked the financial world Aug
7, tweeting that he wanted to take the electric-car maker private at $420 a share and had “funding secured.” In a subsequent blog post,
he indicated that no such financing deal had been closed
The tweet has drawn a subpoena from the Securities and Exchange Commission, according to a person familiar with the matter.
“Given the
feedback I’ve received, it’s apparent that most of Tesla’s existing shareholders believe we are better off as a public company,”
“Although the majority of shareholders I spoke to said they would remain with Tesla if we went private, the sentiment, in a nutshell, was
‘please don’t do this..’”
In a separate statement, a committee of independent directors formed to review Musk’s proposal confirmed
the decision and announced its intention to dissolve.
Musk had hired both Goldman Sachs Group Inc
and Morgan Stanley, the top two merger advisers in the US to advise him personally in his bid to take the company off of the public market,
according to people familiar with the arrangements
Both banks have been lead underwriters on most of the company’s stock and convertible debt offerings.
