Below is a daily summary of links to the latest SPAC news and rumors gathered across the web.
Latest SPAC News: Better.com laid off 900 workers over Zoom day after SPAC merger deal delayed, Gensler warns execs against using SPACs to shirk rules, and Saudi bourse considers SPAC listings
Better.com’s SPAC Merger Will Be Delayed by Changes It Made a Day Before Laying Off 900 People on Zoom
Better HoldCo Inc., a mortgage and real estate startup backed by SoftBank Group Corp., is pushing back its public listing through a merger with a blank-check firm, according to Bloomberg, after amending the deal a day before it terminated 9% of its workforce.
The company will seek new regulatory approval after revising the terms of the merger with Aurora Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:AURC). That will push back the closing of the transaction, which the companies had previously announced was likely to happen in the fourth quarter.
READGensler Warns Executives Against Using SPACs to Shirk U.S. Rules
Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler is warning companies against seeking a tie-up with a blank-check company as a less arduous path to going public.
Gensler signaled at an event Tuesday for business executives that Wall Street’s main regulator is on the look-out for firms that want to use SPAC mergers to sidestep red tape associated with traditional IPOs.
Gensler’s comments come as the regulator steps up its scrutiny of firms involved in SPAC deals, including Lucid Group Inc. (NASDAQ:LCID) and Digital World Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:DWAC), which is merging with former President Donald Trump’s media company.
READSaudi Bourse Has 50 IPO Applications for 2022, Considers SPAC Listings
Saudi Arabia’s stock exchange has 50 applications from companies for IPOs next year and is considering whether to allow SPACs to list, the Saudi Tadawul Group chief executive said on Wednesday.
Khalid al-Hussan, the CEO of bourse owner and operator Tadawul, said the exchange was discussing business models and assessing appetite for SPACs in the kingdom, but added that no legal framework had been proposed as yet.
AGBA (NASDAQ:AGBA) stock is up over +90% this morning following a +211% premarket spike on news it has signed a definitive agreement to combine with social streaming video platform Triller. AGBA, the company itself, was formed by the $555 million combination between a SPAC of the same name and TAG Companies, a financial services firm...
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...