Former Warner Music boss Edgar Bronfman Jr. backs $300m SPAC
A blank-cheque vehicle backed by former Warner Music boss Edgar Bronfman Jr has filed to raise $300m in a US listing.
Waverley Capital Acquisition Corp 1 has said it will sell 30m units, consisting of shares and warrants, at $10 each.
Bronfman is the latest high-profile figure to get in on the SPAC frenzy which has taken global equity markets by storm. Sir Richard Branson has also been a keen supporter of blank cheque vehicles.
Waverley Capital Acquisition said it would mainly focus on deals in the media, technology or entertainment industry for a merger.
The company is led by Bronfman Jr. and Daniel Leff who serve as general partner and managing partner respectively.
Special acquisition companies – SPACs – have proved to be a popular alternative to a standard public listing as they are seen as a quicker and easier way to get to market.
They offer a backdoor to a company hoping to go public by raising capital on the market with the purpose of then acquiring an existing company. Terms usually require the vehicles to secure a deal within two years or return the money to investors.
Online used car platform Cazoo announced plans to merge with a New York-listed SPAC on a Monday in a deal that values the UK firm at $7bn.
The company, which was founded by serial entrepreneur Alex Chesterman in 2018, will merge with Ajax I, a blank-cheque vehicle led by billionaire investor Dan Och.
The deal will provide Cazoo with up to $1.6bn in new funding which it said it will use to spend on growing its brand and infrastructure as well as expanding into new markets like Italy and Spain.