Special-purpose acquisition company

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A Special-purpose acquisition company ( SPAC ) and acquisition purpose company is a casing that was initially capital via an IPO collects around this in a second step in the acquisition to invest a (previously non-fixed-specific) company.

functionality

Typically, a SPAC is launched by a so-called sponsor who invests himself and takes over the entrepreneurial management of the vehicle. Many of these sponsors originally come from the private equity sector. In the first step, money is collected through an IPO and initially invested in an escrow account at the risk-free market interest rate. Within a given time frame (about 24 months) the SPAC tries to make one or more company acquisitions, the acquisition frame generally being given by the company's articles of association, e.g. B. in relation to advised sectors or company size. The aim of an acquisition is to make a company that is not yet listed on the stock exchange publicly tradable through the takeover. The final decision for the takeover is made by the Annual General Meeting: If the majority of the shareholders vote in favor, the purchase will be implemented, otherwise the SPAC will be dissolved and the funds collected will be repaid to the shareholders. If no acquisition is made within the agreed time frame, the liquidation will also follow and the shareholders will get back the money invested in the trust account and which earns interest.

Takeover objects

Many SPAC takeovers are observed in countries such as the United States, China, India, and Israel, as well as in the health, transportation, finance, telecommunications, and consumer products industries. In Germany and Europe, on the other hand, there has so far been little activity in this area.

Examples

While a number of SPACs have been issued in the USA, so far only three SPACs have been issued in Germany:

  • Germany 1 was placed on the stock exchange in July 2008 and raised a total of 250 million euros. In September 2009 Germany 1 took over the majority in the manufacturer of power supply devices AEG Power Solutions .
  • Helikos was placed in January 2010 and raised a total of 200 million euros to invest in German medium-sized companies. In the summer of 2011, Helikos took over the Swiss Exceet Group and has been called the Exceet Group ever since.
  • Europe Cleantech 1 was placed in October 2010 and raised a total of 115 million euros to invest in environmental technology companies.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ "spacs" Private Equity 2.0 Manager Magazin (June 11, 2008)
  2. ↑ IPO / Investment vehicle Germany1 Acquisition plans to go public  ( page can no longer be accessed , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.djnewswires.de  
  3. ↑ Article in the FTD of February 4, 2010 http://www.ftd.de/unternehmen/finanzdienstleister/:erster-boersentag-helikos-leger-holpriges-debuet-hin/50070092.html ( Memento of February 7, 2010 in Internet Archive )
  4. ↑ Article in the FTD of October 21, 2010 http://www.ftd.de/finanzen/maerkte/:boersengang-von-vehikel-european-cleantech- geht-per-handstreich-an-die-boerse/50184921.html ( Memento from October 21, 2010 in the Internet Archive )