SPAC Boom Faces New SEC Threat with Accounting Crackdown

New SEC rules for SPACs

U.S. regulators are throwing another wrench into Wall Street’s SPAC machine by cracking down on how accounting rules apply to a key element of blank-check companies. The Securities and Exchange Commission is setting forth new guidance that warrants, which are issued to early investors in the deals, might not be considered equity instruments and may… Continue reading SPAC Boom Faces New SEC Threat with Accounting Crackdown

SPAC Listings Slow to A Crawl with Bankers Buried in Paperwork

New SEC rules for SPACs

Anxiety is growing that the wellspring of special-purpose acquisition companies, a 2020s echo of the dot-com mania of the 1990s, is bumping up against the limits of both Wall Street and Washington. The pipeline of SPACs rushing to market is getting so clogged that bankers, lawyers and auditors are turning away business as they struggle… Continue reading SPAC Listings Slow to A Crawl with Bankers Buried in Paperwork

WeWork Plans to Go Public in $9B SPAC Merger

New SEC rules for SPACs

WeWork has agreed to merge with a special-purpose acquisition company in a deal that would take the shared-office provider public nearly two years after its high-profile failure to launch a traditional IPO. The planned merger with the BowX Acquisition Corp. SPAC values WeWork at $9 billion including debt, the companies announced Friday, confirming an earlier… Continue reading WeWork Plans to Go Public in $9B SPAC Merger

SPAC Frenzy Emboldens Silicon Valley Startups to Forgo Venture Funding

New SEC rules for SPACs

California aerospace startup Archer Aviation Inc. has a multibillion-dollar vision of flying people around town in autonomous electric helicopters. It doesn’t have revenue or a vehicle ready for liftoff, but that hasn’t slowed the three-year-old company. Instead of toiling away in obscurity with a shoestring budget, the traditional way for startups to spend their formative… Continue reading SPAC Frenzy Emboldens Silicon Valley Startups to Forgo Venture Funding

AmTrust CEO-backed SPAC Files for $300 Million IPO

A Notebook with Business notes initial coin offering ICO vs IPO Initial Public Offering with office tools on yellow blue background. Concept of the choice of IPO or ICO

A blank-check firm, backed by AmTrust Financial Services Chief Executive Officer Barry Zyskind, is looking to raise $300 million through an initial public offering, a regulatory filing showed on Friday. Pine Technology Acquisition Corp said it plans to sell 30 million units, made up of shares and warrants, priced at $10 per share on the… Continue reading AmTrust CEO-backed SPAC Files for $300 Million IPO

Root Insurance Aims to Show It’s A Different Kind of Insurer with Bubba Wallace Ad

One of the few drivers that people who don’t follow NASCAR can name is Bubba Wallace, and he’s never even won a major race. Of course, he is one of the best up-and-coming drivers in the country, a young, magnetic sports star. But it’s off the track where Wallace has really grabbed headlines, primarily for… Continue reading Root Insurance Aims to Show It’s A Different Kind of Insurer with Bubba Wallace Ad

InsurTech Root Files IPO with SEC

On Monday, Root filed to go public, adding a second name to the Insurtech IPO rolls in 2020. Lemonade was first out the gate this summer, taking its rental and home insurance business public at an attractive valuation, compared to its revenues and margins as we traditionally understand them. Wall Street was enticed by its… Continue reading InsurTech Root Files IPO with SEC

Car Insurance Start-up Root Hires Goldman Sachs to Lead IPO

Root Insurance Co has hired Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to lead preparations for an initial public offering that could value the provider of auto insurance through mobile apps at around $6 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. The listing would make Root the latest technology-powered insurance provider to go public. In May, insurance… Continue reading Car Insurance Start-up Root Hires Goldman Sachs to Lead IPO

Duck Creek Rises in Debut After Expanded $405 Million IPO

Duck Creek Technologies Inc., a software provider for insurers, climbed 48% in its trading debut after raising $405 million in an initial public offering priced above the targeted range. The Boston-based company’s shares closed at $40 apiece Friday in New York trading, giving the company a market value of about $5.2 billion. On Thursday it… Continue reading Duck Creek Rises in Debut After Expanded $405 Million IPO

InsurTech Lemonade Raises $319M for IPO

Lemonade Insurtech

Insurtech Lemonade, backed by SoftBank, raised $319 million late Wednesday, which was more than expected. The New York startup sold 11 million shares at $29 each. This was above its $26 to $28 price range. Lemonade will trade Thursday on the New York Stock Exhange under the ticker LMND. Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Allen &… Continue reading InsurTech Lemonade Raises $319M for IPO