SPACInsider

Rohan Malhotra, CEO and Co-Founder of Roadzen

As companies find new ways of automating business processes with AI, a new AI-driven approach to auto insurance is heading West from India with the help of a SPAC deal.

This week, we speak Rohan Malhotra, CEO and co-founder of Roadzen and Steven Carlson from the sponsor of Vahanna Tech Edge Acquisition I Corp. (Nasdaq: VHNA) The two announced a $965 million combination in February. 

Rohan discusses how Roadzen’s disruptive technology cultivated in India is already making major improvements to its margins as it enters more lucrative Western markets. And, how this combination can fuel both its organic and inorganic expansion

While Steven discusses why SPACs need to have a different fundraising and target strategy in the current market conditions.

 

Brandon Mintz, CEO of Bitcoin Depot

This week, we get an update from Brandon Mintz, CEO of Bitcoin Depot, which recently closed its SPAC combination with GSR II Meteora Acquisition Corp. in June.

Brandon shares what advice he has for other companies considering a SPAC merger in the current market and discusses how Bitcoin Depot is hitting the ground running with its acquisition pipeline now that it has public capital at its disposal. 

Plus, we hear how Bitcoin Depot's position as the sole public company in the Bitcoin ATM space will give it strategic advantages moving forward.

Give it a listen

AtlasClear’s Craig Ridenhour and Quantum Fintech’s (QFTA) John Schaible

SPAC structures can provide unique opportunities to bring together many pieces to a new puzzle, which is very much the case with this week’s deal.

This week, we speak with John Schaible, Chairman and CEO of Quantum Fintech Acquisition Corporation (NYSE: QFTA), and Craig Ridenhour, Chief Business Development Officer at AtlasClear.

John and Craig explain how they have crafted a three-way merger to give AtlasClear a unique set of competencies combining trading, clearing, settling and banking with financial products that are generally unavailable to its middle market clients.

They discuss why this market is underserved and what barriers to entry they would be able to surmount by putting this together as a SPAC combination.

 

 

Hervé Tessler, CEO of Noventiq, and Jerry Letter, CFO and COO of Corner Growth Acquisition Corp.

The London Stock Exchange has seen several of its companies decamp for Wall Street and SPACs have become a new avenue for those companies to skip across the pond.

This week, we speak with Hervé Tessler, CEO of Noventiq (LSE:NVNQ) and Jerry Letter, CFO and COO of Corner Growth Acquisition Corp.

They explain why they think Noventiq will be better valued on the Nasdaq following the close of their $800 million combination announced in May, and how Noventiq’s own operations as a digital transformation facilitator are ramping up in the developing world.

Carbon Revolution CEO Jake Dingle

Car enthusiasts have been bolting carbon fiber wheels onto high performance vehicles for years. But, the hitherto luxury add-on brings real benefits to vehicle weight and energy economy, both of which have a new importance in the age of EVs.

This week, we speak with Carbon Revolution CEO Jake Dingle. Carbon Revolution is working to scale up its carbon fiber wheel production to provide the wheels as a mass-produced staple in the industry.

It announced a $270 million combination with Twin Ridge Capital Acquisition Corp. (NYSE:TRCA) in November to accelerate these plans.

He describes the major business advantages in bumping up from the ASX to a US exchange and how the transaction has opened up new financing doors even while it is pending close.

 

Critical Metals Chairman Tony Sage

With lithium supply for EVs and other batteries tight and much of it coming with geopolitical baggage, one new SPAC deal is looking to put forward a lithium stock with less baggage.

Australia and Frankfurt-listed miner European Lithium (ASX:EUR) announced an $838 million deal in October to spin off its Wolfsberg lithium mine in Austria in a combination with Sizzle Acquisition Corp. The new Nasdaq-listed entity called Critical Metals would represent a pure Europe-based lithium mining play that already has offtake and processing agreements in hand.

This week, we speak with Critical Metals Chairman Tony Sage, who tells us how he expects the bump up to the Nasdaq to generate value for the company and what key milestones Critical Metals has to watch for as it gets its lithium out of the mine and into batteries.

 

ZeroNox President and Co-Founder Robert Cruess

SPAC transactions have taken a variety of Electric Vehicle (EV) business models to the public markets.

ZeroNox brings another new approach to the EV story with its focus on retrofitting fleets of off-highway vehicles for sustainability.

This week, we speak with ZeroNox President and Co-Founder Robert Cruess and Yana Kakar, CEO of the Growth for Good Acquisition Corporation (Nasdaq: GFGD).

The pair announced a $306 million dollar combination in March. Yana explains why the off-highway segment of the EV market was attractive for the Growth for Good team.

And Robert notes how ZeroNox’s asset-light approach makes it a unique de-SPAC candidate in the EV space with more revenue generated to date than outside capital raised.

 

OpSec Security CEO Selva Selvaratnam

There are new things happening in brand security from the physical marks that track products through their supply chains to digital tools to prevent online piracy.

This week we speak with with Selva Selvaratnam, CEO of OpSec Security. It provides a variety of these services and it announced a $426 million combination with Investcorp Europe Acquisition Corp. I (NASDAQ:IVCB) in April.

Selva tells us how OpSec approaches cross-selling among its clients and how M&A plays into its efforts to expand EBITDA margins. And, how its SPAC deal could accelerate that path.

SilverBox Capital’s Stephen Kadenacy and Joe Reece

This week, we speak with Joe Reece and Stephen Kadenacy, from the SilverBox team. Joe and Stephen led the Boxwood Merger Corp. and SilverBox Engaged Merger Corp. I transactions, as well as recently priced the SilverBox Corp. III IPO.

We dig into their perspective, having priced SPACs in three very different market environments. Joe and Steve explain why and how they maintained their value priorities while IPOing their third SPAC in the difficult market of early 2023.

The pair also discuss the relative of advantages of having committed capital from forward purchase agreements at IPO versus the flexibility of diverse potential PIPE investors down the road.

What will the landscape look like once the SPAC cycle fully resets, and what does it take for a sponsor to bank a successful deal while the current macro conditions exist?

Give it a listen.

Sudhir Panikassery, Founder & CEO of Aeries Technology, and Daniel Webb, CEO/CFO of Worldwide Webb

SPACs have been searching hard for combination targets with lean balance sheets and strong cash flow. So, why not combine with a company that helps other companies develop lean balance sheets and strong cash flow?

Aeries Technology does just that, working frequently in conjunction with private equity firms to find efficiencies in their target companies amid a turnaround.

This week, we speak with Sudhir Panikassery, founder and CEO of Aeries. It announced a $391 million combination with Worldwide Webb Acquisition Corp in March.

Sudhir explains why sourcing clients through private equity firm partners has helped it maintain sticky retention while expanding its margins as it embeds its services deeper in company operations.

Daniel Webb, CEO and CFO of Worldwide Webb Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: WWAC), also joins to discuss why Aeries is a fit for the current climate and how they have structured the transaction to provide additional potential upside.