Blackstone, Vista, Brookfield rule out financing Elon Musk’s Twitter bid

Twitter Inc. signage is displayed outside the company's headquarters in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Thursday, Feb. 8, 2018. Twitter Inc. soared the most since its market debut in 2013 after it posted the first revenue growth in four quarters, driven by improvements to its app and added video content that are persuading advertisers to boost spending on the social network.

Private equity firms including Blackstone Inc. and Vista Equity Partners have ruled out financing Elon Musk’s takeover bid for Twitter Inc., according to people familiar with the matter.

Brookfield Asset Management has also opted against backstopping Musk’s unsolicited, $43 billion offer, said the people, who asked to not be identified because the matter isn’t public. Vista and Blackstone aren’t interested in participating in any potential bid for Twitter from Musk or any other party at the moment, the people added.

To be sure, there’s plenty of other financing sources out there for Musk to tap, one person said.

Representatives for Blackstone, Vista Equity and Brookfield declined to comment.

The reluctance from some of the biggest names in private equity to get involved in Musk’s Twitter adventure underscores the obstacles facing his bid for control of the social media company. Aside from assembling the financing, he has to win over the company’s board. Twitter already launched a poison pill defense to thwart Musk’s bid to take the company private at $54.20 a share.

There are other variables. At $43 billion, the deal would be one of the largest leveraged buyouts on record, raising questions about whether it would be economical for any would-be backers. Plus there’s another wild card: Musk himself.

Still, he may not totally be on his own. Apollo Global Management Inc. is interested in participating in a bid for Twitter in the form of credit or preferred equity, Bloomberg News reported this week. Twitter has also been fielding takeover interest from other parties, including technology-focused private equity firm Thoma Bravo, Bloomberg has reported.

The Financial Times reported earlier that Blackstone, Vista and Brookfield weren’t interested in helping Musk.