Elon Musk backs merging Tesla and SpaceX into a $3.5 trillion giant but warns the deal is not certain
Elon Musk, whose SpaceX share price rose 8 per cent in after-hours trading, has described the merger negotiations as 'an odd kabuki dance' given his conflict of interest.SpaceX's Starship rocket lifting off from Boca Chica, Texas. Elon Musk's company posted a $4.4bn quarterly profit, reversing a loss of about $1bn a year earlier, as talks over a merger with Tesla continue.
Elon Musk is excluded from the negotiations himself, describing the process as 'an odd kabuki dance' between two special committees of independent directors. Any deal requires approval from half of all Tesla's outstanding shares, a threshold he called 'quite a high hurdle'. SpaceX shares jumped 8% in after-hours trading on the news, which came as SpaceX posted $14.58 billion in quarterly revenue and a $4.4 billion profit.
Roughly 85% of SpaceX's voting power rests with Musk, compared with only around 20% at Tesla.
Barclays has suggested a deal announcement may arrive ahead of Tesla's December annual meeting.
'I feel like I'm tap dancing through a minefield,' Musk told analysts on the call.
