NEW YORK (NYTIMES) - Private equity firm Apollo Global Management is considering participating in a bid for Twitter by offering debt financing to potential buyers, including Tesla chief executive Elon Musk, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

No decisions have yet been made, said the person, who requested anonymity because the talks were confidential.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported Apollo's potential participation in a bid.

Mr Musk, who also leads rocket maker SpaceX, last week put forward a roughly US$40 billion (S$54.5 billion) bid to buy Twitter. Mr Musk, whose wealth is largely tied up in stocks, did not offer any details about financing such a deal.

Investors have been sceptical that he would be able to cobble together the funds needed to buy Twitter. Analysts have estimated that Mr Musk, the world's wealthiest man, would need US$15 billion to US$20 billion in debt to fund his efforts. He recently amassed a stake of more than 9 per cent in the company.

Last week, Twitter announced it was using a method called a "poison pill", which would make it significantly harder for Mr Musk to acquire more than 15 per cent of the company. Twitter said the defensive manoeuvre would not stop the company from holding talks with any potential buyer, and would give it more time to negotiate a deal that the Twitter's board believes best reflects the company's value.

Mr Musk's approach appears to have stirred other potential buyers. At least one other private equity firm, Thoma Bravo, has expressed interest in acquiring Twitter, The New York Times previously reported.

Mr Musk, for his part, appears undeterred. On Saturday, he tweeted the words "Love Me Tender" alongside musical notes, a seeming reference to both the Elvis Presley ballad by the same name and a "tender offer" in which Mr Musk would take his offer directly to shareholders.

Apollo has experience in the media industry. Last year, it acquired AOL and Yahoo in a deal worth US$5 billion.