X eyes $44B valuation in new financing round — same as the 2022 take-private price
Feb 20, 2025
Key Points
- X is raising at a $44 billion valuation, matching Musk's 2022 take-private price and signaling the platform has stabilized after months of advertiser uncertainty.
- Ramp data shows 68% of advertisers increased spending on X last month, providing third-party validation that the advertiser exodus has reversed.
- X's reported $1 billion EBITDA at a 44x multiple is defensible for a growing tech platform with renewed advertiser interest and traction in AI and live streaming.
Summary
X is pursuing a new financing round at a $44 billion valuation, matching the price Elon Musk paid to take the platform private in 2022. The company has never done a down round, and this valuation signals confidence after months of skepticism about X's viability.
The move is backed by real spending data. Ramp's chief economist found that 68% of advertisers increased their spending on X in the most recent month, reversing January's exodus. Leaked internal financials reportedly showed X generating over $1 billion in EBITDA, which at a 44x multiple on a growing tech company is not unreasonable by SaaS standards.
The backdrop matters. When X's valuation was marked down internally early this year, employees' stock options became cheaper, setting them up for gains if the company successfully reprices. Beyond the optics, X has material operational improvements to point to: Grok AI recently hit the top spot on the iOS App Store above ChatGPT, the platform now offers direct access to a frontier AI model, and live streaming has gained traction—PMF or Die streams there, and core tech figures remain active on the platform.
Skepticism remains warranted around some claims. Google's AI disclosures have eroded trust after accelerated demo footage, and X itself invites similar scrutiny. But the advertising data is granular and comes from a neutral third party monitoring actual spend, not rhetoric. That's harder to dismiss than media narratives about advertiser flight.
The valuation also reflects a simpler logic: if the business is generating substantial EBITDA and has a growing user base with renewed advertiser interest, $44 billion is not an aggressive ask, especially for a platform that Musk spent $44 billion to acquire just three years ago.