Twitter's fired top executives Parag Agrawal, Ned Segal & Vijaya Gadde 'to get $122M'

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, closed his $44 billion deal for the microblogging site Twitter last week, and fired top officials including CEO Parag Agrawal and Vijaya Gadde, immediately after the deal was finalised. According to reports, the former bosses at Twitter Parag Agrawal and Vijaya Gadde are entitled to get a massive payout under the "golden parachute" scheme. According to the Court filings, both top executives will get $122 million after being fired by the company's new owner.  As per Investopedia, a 'golden parachute' consists of substantial benefits given to top executives if the company is taken over by another firm, and the executives are terminated as a result of the merger or takeover. 'Golden parachutes' are contracts with key executives and can be used as a type of anti-takeover measure, often collectively referred to as poison pills, taken by a firm to discourage an unwanted takeover attempt. Benefits may include stock options, cash bonuses, and generous severance pay.

Sometimes, this measure is also called as 'poison pill' since it can act as a safeguard against hostile takeovers. According to company filings, it is estimated that ex-CEO Paras Agrawal is likely to receive the largest payout, worth $57.4 million, while former Twitter CFO Ned Segal and Gedde are entitled to USD 44.5 million and $20 million respectively. Moreover, Musk has to bear the cost of legal cases in millions as he tried to terminate the deal earlier in July, arguing that the company had misled him over the number of bot accounts on the social network.

Why Musk's Twitter deal had turned controversial?

The circumstances came after several twists and turn since the very first day when Musk proposed his intention to buy a 100 per cent stake in Twitter. Initially, it was believed that the deal involving the world’s richest man and one of the most influential social media platforms was settled impassively. However, much of the drama played out on Twitter itself, with Musk raising questions about the fake accounts. He often took to Twitter to lament his decision to acquire the platform.

In June 2021, Twitter reportedly agreed to share full information on spam "bots accounts" -- automated accounts that typically promote scams and misinformation. Confronted with the data, Musk walked away from the deal. Although Twitter claimed it has around 229 million accounts, of which nearly 5 per cent are fake or bots, Musk disputed the claims and asserted that 20 per cent or more accounts are bogus, without contending any evidence. 

Image: AP/Linkedin/Parag Aggrawal/ Unsplash