Elon Musk values Twitter at $20 billion in stock grant offer to employees

Twitter CEO Elon Musk has offered stock grants to the company's employees at a valuation of nearly $20 billion. This valuation is less than half of the $44 billion that Musk had paid to acquire the social media platform, according to a report by the Information.

"I see a clear, but difficult, path to a >$250B valuation," meaning stock granted now would be worth 10 times more, Musk said in the email stating that he was optimistic about the social-media company’s future.

The report suggests that this drop in Twitter's value could be the reason for the lowered stock grant valuation. Although Twitter has not yet commented on the report.

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Musk had earlier stated in December that the social media platform is expected to be "roughly cash flow break-even" in 2023. This prediction came after top advertisers had reportedly slashed their spending on the platform following Musk's takeover.

According to another report in Fortune Magazine, Musk sent an email to the company's employees in the early hours of Wednesday, informing them about the microblogging site's remote-working policy. In the email,  the Twitter chief Musk reportedly said that "office is not optional," as per a tweet by Platformer Managing Editor Zo Schiffer.

Schiffer's tweet further stated that in his message to the employees, Musk noted that the company's San Francisco offices were half empty on the previous day. However, it is worth noting that since taking control of the platform, the billionaire has fired thousands of employees.

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It is not the first time that Elon Musk has communicated new corporate policies to employees through late-night emails. In fact, it has become somewhat of a pattern for him. The Washington Post reported that shortly after taking over Twitter, Musk sent an email to staff members at 2 am, stating that they would need to become "extremely hardcore" and work long hours.

Musk had also mandated a minimum of 40 working hours per week for Twitter employees in November, emphasising the importance of this requirement to the company's culture. He stated that "if you don't show up, we will assume you have resigned".

This policy drew criticism from worker advocates, who pointed out the potential exposure to COVID-19. However, it is worth noting that Twitter had already established a flexible remote work arrangement before the acquisition.

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