Jack Dorsey has confirmed that he will be resigning as Twitter’s chief executive after a share price spike followed reports of the move.
Posting on the platform he said that it was “finally time for me to leave”.
In a statement released by the company he said: “I’ve decided to leave Twitter because I believe the company is ready to move on from its founders.”
Parag Agrawal has been announced as the new CEO and a member of the board, with immediate effect, and said he was “honoured and humbled” by the appointment.
Shares in the social media platform rose 9% on market opening on Monday morning following a report that Mr Dorsey, 45, who co-founded Twitter in 2006, was to leave his role.
He will remain the chief executive of financial payments company Square, which has a market capitalisation of over $98bn (£73bn) compared to Twitter’s $38bn (£28bn).
Mr Dorsey faced ousting last year when Twitter stakeholder Paul Singer, the found of Elliott Management, publicly questioned his ability to run both companies at the same time.
The investment firm eventually reached a deal with Twitter’s management.
Twitter’s shares rose 9% on market opening following the news that Mr Dorsey would step down
CNBC said that trading was now halted due to news pending.
In his most recent tweet, the CEO declared his love for the microblogging platform.
It is a business he has repeatedly had to defend before Congressional committees, including relating to the company’s controversial decision to ban Donald Trump in relation to comments he made regarding the 2020 US presidential election.
Earlier this year Mr Trump asked a federal judge to force Twitter to restore his account, which was shut down after his supporters attacked the US Capitol in January.
