After Twitter Bans Trump, Stocks Take Significant Tumble

For decades to come, and perhaps even longer, politicians and historians will be studying the way in which President Donald Trump used Twitter to his advantage, and the repercussions of that platform outright banning him just before the end of his first term.

The action, taken by Twitter in the wake of the January 6th attack on the US Capitol, was a harsh rebuke of the President and belies the concern that they have about Trump stoking any further actions from such crowds.

That decision, however, has cost Twitter dearly.

Shares of Twitter (TWTR) sank more than 10% on Monday after the social media company permanently banned President Donald Trump from the platform late last week.

The tech company suspended Trump’s account on Friday in a move to prevent him from using the platform to incite further unrest among his supporters following the violent protests at the U.S. Capitol last week, according to Twitter. Shortly after market open Monday, the stock dropped as much as 12.3% to reach as low as $45.17 per share.

The context, rather than just the content, of some of Trump’s latest tweets suggested “they were highly likely to encourage and inspire people to replicate the criminal acts that took place at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021,” Twitter wrote in a statement explaining its decision. In one Tweet, Trump asserted that his supporters would “not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way,” and in another, noted he would not be attending the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden on Jan. 20, suggesting the event “would be a ‘safe’ target, as he will not be attending,” Twitter added.

President Trump is currently also blocked from posting via the @POTUS account, the @WhiteHouse account, and Facebook.