Elon Musk backs merging SpaceX and Tesla into a $3.5 trillion giant as 'special committees' hold talks
Elon Musk, who has described himself as "a conflicted party" excluded from negotiations, said treating the proposed Tesla-SpaceX merger as a done deal "would be overstating it".
Elon Musk says he is excluded from the discussions because he is a 'conflicted party', describing the process as 'an odd kabuki dance'. After his comments on Tuesday's earnings call, SpaceX shares rose 8 per cent in after-hours trading. Any deal would require the support of half of all Tesla shares, a threshold Musk called 'quite a high hurdle'. He cautioned that treating a merger as a foregone conclusion 'would be overstating it'.
It would be the largest merger ever, with SpaceX valued at $2tn and Tesla $1.5tn.
SpaceX posted a $4.4bn quarterly profit, reversing a loss of about $1bn a year earlier.
Barclays has suggested a deal announcement could come before Tesla's December shareholder meeting.
