VC Firm Hambro Perks Eyes First London SPAC Listing Under New Rules

23 Nov 2021, 07:27 PM IST

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. venture capital firm Hambro Perks Ltd. aims to raise 140 million pounds ($187 million) listing a special purpose acquisition company in London, in what could be the market’s first major blank-check offering since overhauling its rules.

Hambro Perks Acquisition Co. plans to sell 14 million units at 10 pounds apiece, it said in a statement Tuesday. Each unit represents one share and the right to receive half a warrant. It will seek to merge with a late-stage technology-enabled company, with a focus on firms from the U.K. and Europe, according to the statement.

The SPAC could raise as much as 150 million pounds if an over-allotment option is exercised. Citigroup Inc. is sole global coordinator and bookrunner of the planned offering.

The U.K. market watchdog changed its rules this summer to allow SPACs raising at least 100 million pounds to avoid an old requirement to suspend trading when an acquisition is announced. That regulation was previously seen as a key obstacle to the success of blank-check listings in London.

Continental Europe has seen a steady stream of SPAC listings this year, even as the blank-check boom cools in the U.S. Of the 31 European offerings by SPACs this year, more than half have listed since June, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The Hambro Perks SPAC will have a 15-month duration, with an option to extend by three months up to two times, according to Tuesday’s statement.

Hambro Perks is led by co-founder Dominic Perks, a former McKinsey & Co. consultant and Morgan Stanley banker. Its investments have included PrimaryBid, which offers retail traders access to initial public offerings, as well as location startup What3Words, digital banking app Tide and Muslim dating platform Muzmatch.

The firm has offices in London and Abu Dhabi and runs several funds, including a flagship venture capital pool targeting seed funding and series A investments in European tech firms. It also runs a vehicle focused on environmental protection as well as a special opportunities fund investing in health-care and biotechnology companies in the U.S. and U.K.