STORY: Elon Musk has secured $46.5 billion to buy Twitter and is considering a tender offer for its shares.

That’s according to a new filing with U.S. regulators.

It follows a series of cryptic tweets including "Love Me Tender" and an apparent reference to "Tender is the Night."

A tender offer would bring Musk's bid directly to shareholders to buy their stock.

Musk himself has committed to put up $33.5 billion to finance the transaction, while banks, including Morgan Stanley, have agreed to provide another $13 billion in debt secured against Twitter itself, according to the filing.

Musk's latest move comes after Twitter failed to respond to his offer and adopted a "poison pill" to thwart the billionaire's effort to buy the company for $43 billion.

Musk, a self-described "free speech absolutist," has said the social media platform needs to be taken private to grow and become a platform for free speech.

The offer from Musk, who is Twitter's second-largest shareholder with a 9% stake, has drawn private equity interest in a buyout, according to Reuters reporting.

Apollo Global Management is considering ways it can provide financing to any deal and is open to working with Musk or any other bidder, while Thoma Bravo has informed Twitter that it is exploring the possibility of putting together a bid.