Wall Street Banks Sell Final Portion of Musk’s $13B X Debt
After more than two years stuck with a mountain of debt tied to Elon Musk’s $44 billion Twitter buyout, a group of major banks has finally offloaded the final $1.2 billion. Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Barclays, and others sold the loans at 98 cents on the dollar, with a 9.5% yield — far better than the fire-sale prices hedge funds once offered. This wraps up the $13 billion package used to help Musk acquire Twitter (now X), a deal that many had labeled the worst financing move since 2008.
Investor appetite shifted sharply after Musk merged X with his AI startup, xAI, forming a combined company he says is worth $113 billion. Revenue at X has picked up, costs are down, and Musk’s ties to President Trump brought advertisers — and confidence — back. “If I were Morgan Stanley I’d be walking on air,” said retired finance professor Jeffrey Hooke. Others agree: this comeback lets the banks dodge the worst-case losses and even earn hefty interest in the meantime.
For Musk, it’s a full-circle moment. His original $44 billion offer included a 40% premium on Twitter’s stock, driven by his belief in “free speech” and X’s potential as a digital town square. Though that vision spooked advertisers early on, it’s now helping sell a new narrative — one focused on AI, subscriptions, and a shot at raising $20 billion more. Investors, it seems, are betting big on Musk Inc. again.
