Below is a daily summary of links to the latest SPAC news and rumors gathered across the web.
Latest SPAC News: Hong Kong market regulator urges city to uphold rule of law, IPO market freeze sparks 80% drop in Nasdaq listings, and Grab takes cost-cutting measures
Top Hong Kong Market Regulator Urges City to Uphold Rule of Law
Hong Kong’s status as an international financial center hinges on ensuring investors have confidence that the city follows the “conventional” rule of law in place in other global hubs and maintaining its special role as a bridge between the world and China, according to Ashley Alder, the outgoing top market regulator.
Alder noted that “SPACs were one of the phenomena which basically signaled the final bit of bull market. We were very aware of that. Given that there seemed to be an inevitable, unstoppable drive to create a SPAC regime, we ended up with one that was deliberately designed to detoxify it. Because the incentives and other features of SPACs, without that sort of framework, in my view, broadly works against public investors.”
READIPO market freeze sparks 80% drop in Nasdaq listings
Equity listings on the Nasdaq fell about 80% this year, as the appetite for new issues took a hit from extreme volatility in the stock market, sparked by the Federal Reserve’s war on inflation.
A total of 156 companies listed their shares on the bourse this year, raising nearly $15 billion in initial public offerings, a far cry from 743 firms that raised $180 billion in what was a blockbuster 2021, data from the exchange operator showed.
The year also saw a big drop in the listings of blank-check companies, as regulatory concerns and their free-falling share price seemed to have cooled Wall Street’s hottest investment trend of 2021. In total, 68 SPACs listed on the exchange in 2022, compared with 110 a year earlier.
READGrab cost-cutting measures necessary but uncertainties continue to loom, say analysts
The recent round of cost-cutting measures undertaken by super app company Grab (NASDAQ:GRAB), coming two-and-a-half years since it last executed a major retrenchment exercise, was a necessary move given the firm’s financial situation, said analysts.
Its move was the latest in a spate of cost-cutting measures by high-profile tech firms, some of which have laid off workers, with one analyst describing Grab’s decision as a “matter of survival”.
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Shepherd Ave Capital Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: SPHAU) is the latest SPAC to file to IPO, making 24 new registration statements that have filed since June 1, 2024. So far, only two of those 24 have gone public, but it does indicate an active August. In SPACLand at least, August is never slow. As for Shepherd...
At the SPAC of Dawn SPACs have now priced 20 IPOs seven months into 2024 with an eye on beating 2023’s total of 31 IPOs. With a little more than 5 months left in the year, it’s expected that SPACs should at least match that number by only needing to price roughly two IPOs per...
DT Cloud Star announced the pricing of its $60 million IPO and its units are expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq under the symbol “DTSQU”, Thursday, July 25, 2024. The new SPAC aims to combine with an established business with long-term financial visibility, but has not limited itself to a particular industry or sector....
Launch Two (NASDAQ:LPBBU) has filed for a $200 million IPO that shows how the market has shifted for new issuance since its sister SPAC Launch One (NASDAQ:LPAAU) filed just over a month ago. Both SPACs are underwritten by Cantor Fitzgerald and seeking nominally the same raise at IPO, but Launch Two is overfunding its trust...
FTAC Emerald (NASDAQ:EMLD) has entered into a definitive agreement to combine with crypto fintech firm Fold at an enterprise value of $381 million. Phoenix, Arizona-based Fold provides digital banking services backed by a treasury of Bitcoin that includes FDIC-secured checking accounts as well Bitcoin trading and awards. The combined company is expected to trade on...