USHG (NYSE:HUGS) announced this morning that it would not extend an agreement to partner in an IPO for restaurant operator Panera announced in November.
Always something of an oddity, USHG’s plan bore some semblance to Pershing Square Tontine’s (NYSE:PSTH) bid to join in Universal Music’s (AS:UMG) Amsterdam IPO. Pershing Square’s approach attempted to purchase shares ahead of the IPO and keep the SPAC running under a SPARC structure.
But, USHG instead intended to structure the transaction such that it would be acquired by Panera rather than the other way around, perhaps to avoid potential conflicts with the Investment Company Act of 1940, which was the basis for legal challenges to Pershing Square’s proposed deal. Under this structure, USHG shares would have been exchanged for Panera Brands stock at the equivalent value of its IPO price and the JAB restaurant conglomerate offered to provide a backstop.
Despite this complexity, it is the conditions of the IPO market rather than the SPAC market that appears to have nixed the deal. USHG Chairman Danny Meyer noted in the press release that it was unlikely that Panera would embark on its IPO plans in the near-term, so the SPAC decided to let the agreement’s June 30 expiration date pass without extension. The four consumer services companies that have dared to list via a traditional IPO so far in 2022 have had median returns of -29.9%.
USHG still has until March 1, 2023 to complete a transaction and will likely continue to search in hospitality and entertainment, given the experience of its sponsor, Union Square Hospitality Group, in managing a range of upscale New York City eateries.
Berenson Acquisition Corp. I (BACA) Signs Non-Redemption Agreements Berenson (NASDAQ:WTMA) announced in an 8-K this morning that it has entered non-redemption agreements with third parties that will secure 655,715 shares from redemption. The filing did not note what incentive, if any, these investors received for agreeing not to redeem. The move comes as Berenson is...
Crixus BH3 Acquisition Company (NASDAQ: BHAC) announced in a filing this afternoon that it is postponing its extension vote to Friday, October 6, 2023 at 9:00 a.m ET. The meeting was originally to be held Friday, September 29, but presumably it has been moved to account for amendments to its proxy which was filed today...
Welsbach Technology Metals Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: WTMA) announced in an 8-K this afternoon that it is postponing its extension vote one day to 2 pm ET September 29. The SPAC would not be able to postpone it much further as its current transaction deadline falls on a Saturday the next day, September 30. At the...
Global Lights Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:GLAC) rolled out an S-1 on Friday, to become the 21st SPAC to file in 2023. This keeps the recent pace with two new SPACs filing to list in each of the past three months so far. Three out of the last four of those have also sought to raise $60...
Below is a daily summary of links to the latest SPAC news and rumors gathered across the web. Terran Orbital Closes 432.5 Million Public Offering Terran Orbital Corporation (NYSE: LLAP) (“Terran Orbital” or the “Company”), which combined with Tailwind Two in March 2022, today announced the closing of its previously announced public offering of 23,214,290...