GLG deal further undermines blank checks 17 May 2010 The hedge fund firm got its NYSE listing when Freedom, a blank check company or SPAC, bought a stake back in 2007. Then, Freedom's stock traded at $10plus. Now, Man Group is buying GLG for $4.50 a share. Sure, initial holders got a pop but long term, it's another SPAC flop.
Apollo’s Spac deal is unlikely to reward everyone 17 Jun 2008 The buyout firm is selling Hughes Telematics to a blank check company in return for a stake. Hughes has tiny sales and aggressive growth assumptions. The deal will probably be approved. But it shows why investors who come into Spacs after they buy something should be careful.
Goldman’s failure to mainstream Spacs shows their limits 29 May 2008 The investment bank withdrew a Spac IPO because it couldn t drum up demand. That s odd given the deal had an unusually shareholderfriendly structure. But Goldman didn t peddle the deal to the traditional Spac crowd. Its failure to find broader demand shows the limits of Spacs.
Spacs shouldn’t be considered a bear market hedge 4 Mar 2008 Issuers say investors are snapping up shares of blank cheque IPOs even as they shun regular IPOs because there is little downside. But that s only true if the manager doesn t buy anything. If he does and he has every incentive to do so investors can easily lose out.
Perelman latest to test Spac investor gullibility 7 Dec 2007 The Revlon boss has filed for a blankcheck IPO. Despite his iffy track record, investors will probably give him the $500m he wants. After all, two relatively obscure financiers just raised the largest Spac ever. Investors should be more skeptical.
Shell companies attract the attention of Wall Street 14 Feb 2006 Special purpose acquisition vehicles are becoming a popular way to raise acquisition finance for smaller companies. However, their increasing size and rising leverage indicate speculative excess.