Twitter said Monday afternoon that it has agreed to be sold to Elon Musk for US$54.20 per share, or roughly US$44 billion, in one of the largest leveraged buyouts in history. The price represents a roughly 38 per cent premium over the social media platform’s market value on April 1, before the Tesla CEO disclosed his stake in the company. Here’s what else you need to know:

What it means: In a time when many powerful voices are calling for more oversight of tech platforms, one of the most influential social media companies will become privately held, controlled by the world’s richest person. The deal portends big changes for Twitter’s content-moderation policies, which Musk has criticized on the grounds that its practices stifle speech. He said in a statement Monday that he plans to make Twitter’s algorithms open source and vowed to crack down on spam.

Trading in Twitter shares was halted ahead of the announcement, but later resumed and closed more than five per cent higher at US$51.70. Its stock rose throughout the day amid reports that the company’s board had warmed to Musk’s offer, negotiating through the night on Sunday to reach an agreement. 

It caps a dramatic turn of events that began on April 4, when Musk revealed a 9.2 per cent stake in the company and later made an about-face on joining Twitter’s board. After making an offer for the entire company, Twitter adopted a poison pill to prevent a hostile takeover. Many expected the board to reject the offer, but Musk’s announcement Friday that he had secured financing for the deal raised the likelihood that it would accept.

Who’s in (or out): Two Canadian banks, RBC and CIBC, are providing the financing for the deal, much of which is secured by Musk’s holdings in Tesla. Shares in the EV maker fell slightly after Twitter announced the acquisition. Other banks providing funding include Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank.

The deal raises questions about CEO Parag Agrawal’s future with the company. Twitter will hold an all-hands later Monday to discuss the acquisition, which has been controversial among staff. It is set to report earnings Thursday.