Below is a daily summary of links to the latest SPAC news and rumors gathered across the web.
Latest SPAC News: It’s a Summer of SPACs in Europe, Rascoff’s SPAC in talks to take Buyers Edge public, former CBS CEO launches SPAC, and Tom Barrack to appear in California court for bail hearing
Rascoff SPAC Said in Talks to Take Buyers Edge Platform Public
Software provider Buyers Edge Platform is in discussions to go public through a merger with Spencer Rascoff’s Supernova Partners Acquisition Co. II Ltd., according to Bloomberg.
Rascoff’s SPAC has sought to raise equity to support a transaction, but the transaction value has yet to be learned.
READFormer CBS Chief Joe Ianniello Launches SPAC Amid Media Merger Mania
Joe Ianniello, who led CBS Corp. when it merged with Viacom Inc. in 2019, is launching a SPAC, dubbed Argus, that hopes to raise at least $300 million and pursue a merger.
In an interview, Mr. Ianniello said media is a target-rich industry, as large companies look to spin off assets that aren’t their core focus. He pointed to ViacomCBS’s decision to sell CNET to Red Ventures LLC in 2020 and AT&T Inc.’s move earlier this year to spin out its DirecTV business.
“All of these companies grew a lot through M&A, and they’re diversified,” Mr. Ianniello said. “A lot of these companies are going to shed assets for them to focus.” Other potential acquisition targets could be in the telecommunications or technology sectors, Mr. Ianniello told The Wall Street Journal.
READTom Barrack to Appear in California Court for Bail Hearing
Colony Capital founder and Trump ally Thomas J. Barrack Jr. is scheduled to appear before a federal judge in Los Angeles Friday to learn whether he will be released on bail, after his arrest this week on charges of illegally lobbying on behalf of the United Arab Emirates, according to Bloomberg.
Falcon Acquisition Corp., a SPAC backed by Barrack’s family office, gave notice Friday that it was withdrawing plans for an IPO. The SPAC had sought to raise $250 million to tap Barrack’s experience with “elephant-style” transactions in its search for a merger target.
The U.S. also called Grimes, who worked for Barrack at Colony, a flight risk. Grimes was supposed to be president of the Falcon SPAC.
READNEO Announces Public Markets Debut of the First-Ever G-Corp
NEO today announces that Canaccord Genuity G Ventures Corp. (“CGGV”), a newly-formed Growth Acquisition Corporation™ (“G-Corp™”), launched today on the NEO Exchange, marking the first-ever G-Corp to go public.
Having closed a $15,000,000 IPO, CGGV is now trading its Class A restricted voting units under the symbol NEO:CGGV.UN
READIt’s a Summer of SPACs in Europe as Speedy Deals Prompt IPOs
The frenzy of blank-check firms listing on the stock market may have cooled off in the U.S., but it’s hotter than ever in Europe, encouraged by the speed with which some of the acquisition vehicles are finding targets to buy.
Of the 27 European offerings by SPACs in the past year, more than half have listed since June, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Lakestar SPAC I SE, which listed in Frankfurt in February, agreed last week to buy vacation home platform HomeToGo in a 1.2 billion-euro ($1.4 billion) deal. Italy’s Revo SpA went public in May and this week struck a deal for insurer Elba Assicurazioni SpA.
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At the SPAC of Dawn Since closing its combination with DHC last month, AI customer engagement firm BEN (NASDAQ:BNAI) has rolled out new partnerships with call center and healthcare clients. And, while it faces a fair bit of competition in the chatbot realm, several high-profile institutions have demonstrated that creating one that provides useful services...
Blue Ocean (NASDAQ:BOCN) provided significantly more texture today in the presentation for its $275 million combination with Asian digital media group TNL Mediagene, which it expects to hit profitability in the second half of the year despite a slight shakeup in financing for the transaction. The first big update in the first investor deck is...
At the SPAC of Dawn A brand new market may have just opened up for space de-SPACs as NASA administrator Bill Nelson announced a shift in the agency’s $11 billion program for a mission to return samples from Mars. Rather than rely on the agency’s internal technologies that would be predicted to get a sample...
Overall deal flow between SPACs and biotech firms has slowed over the last year, but some pending FDA changes could breathe new life into particular business models within the space. In particular, the FDA has asked Congress as part of its 2025 Legislative Proposals to eliminate the interchangeability designation for biosimilar medications, claiming the existing...
At the SPAC of Dawn Ever since Digital World announced its combination with Trump Media (NASDAQ:DJT) back in October 2021, it was clear that SPACworld and the Trump show were set to be intertwined for quite some time. And, although not every headline has a bearing on the wider SPAC world, Trump Media’s post-close rise...