WSJ: Apollo Global willing to finance Twitter buyout

Apollo Global Management Inc. is considering participating in a bid for Twitter Inc., according to people familiar with the matter, after Elon Musk’s $43 billion bid put the social-media company in play, Report informs referring to The Wall Street Journal.

Apollo, one of the world’s largest buyout firms, has held discussions about backing a possible deal for Twitter and could provide Musk or another bidder like private-equity firm Thoma Bravo LP with equity or debt to support an offer, the people said.

Apollo, which owns Yahoo, has also been evaluating potential cooperation between the online-media company and Twitter, the people said. There is no guarantee Twitter would be receptive to that, or any other deal.

Twitter is expected to rebuff Musk’s offer in the coming days, some of the people said. The company is set to report earnings April 28 and may detail its stance then.

Private-equity firms including Thoma Bravo are circling Twitter, people familiar with the matter said last week after Musk launched his surprise bid.

New York-based Apollo is a private-equity and lending behemoth with roughly $500 billion under management, known for buying companies in a range of sectors including media and for its big insurance arm. The firm often invests across a company’s capital structure, providing preferred equity or debt, in addition to doing straightforward buyouts.

Thoma Bravo, a technology-focused investor that manages about $100 billion, has historically relied almost exclusively on private-credit financing for its deals, including its recent $10.7 billion deal for software-maker Anaplan Inc.

Musk, the billionaire Tesla Inc. chief executive, owns a more than 9% stake in Twitter. In recent weeks he has been criticizing how it is run, including its approach to content moderation, which he has argued impedes free speech.