ADC Acquisition Corporation has agreed to acquire Abu Dhabi-based United Printing and Publishing, in what would be the region's first special purpose acquisition company merger deal.
ADC is the UAE's first Spac, or blank-cheque company. Spacs have no commercial operations and trade without business fundamentals.
The transaction will see UPP get Dh1.1 billion ($299 million) of new cash from ADC.
ADC, which was set up by the Abu Dhabi holding company ADQ and private investment firm Chimera Investments, also plans to raise Dh734 million from private investment in public equity, it said late on Tuesday in a filing to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX).
The deal values UPP at Dh600 million, ADC said. After the merger, UPP will become a publicly-listed company on the ADX.
“As the region's first Spac merger process, this transaction marks a notable achievement for ADC,” chief executive Seif Fikry said.
“We are confident that UPP represents an attractive platform with strong and stable revenue through its long-term contracts and relationships with anchor customers, such as UAE government entities.
“UPP’s high revenue visibility provides a robust foundation for future growth.”
Spacs are formed with the intention of raising funds, through an initial public offering, to acquire existing companies. Spac-led IPOs have lighter disclosure requirements than regular ones and have increasingly been used over the past three years to take fast-growing companies public quickly.
There were 86 Spac IPOs in 2022, which raised a combined $13.42 billion, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data.
With this transaction, UPP will be able to significantly accelerate the execution of its organic and inorganic growth strategies
Ali Alnuaimi,
chief executive of UPP
Established in April last year, ADC is a Spac tasked with identifying high-growth businesses with attractive valuations.
ADQ will be issued 62.3 million new class A shares in ADC for Dh10 each, implying an equity value of Dh623 million for UPP, ADC said.
UPP, which was set up in 2006 and operates in segments with large end-markets, plans to grow its presence internationally and domestically.
“With this transaction, UPP will be able to significantly accelerate the execution of its organic and inorganic growth strategies,” chief executive Ali Al Nuaimi said.
“Our confidence in the growth prospects of our secure printing offering is unwavering, and it will be further supported by additional, more diversified revenue streams, such as sustainable packaging.”
Scotland's team:
15-Sean Maitland, 14-Darcy Graham, 13-Nick Grigg, 12-Sam Johnson, 11-Byron McGuigan, 10-Finn Russell, 9-Ali Price, 8-Magnus Bradbury, 7-Hamish Watson, 6-Sam Skinner, 5-Grant Gilchrist, 4-Ben Toolis, 3-Willem Nel, 2-Stuart McInally (captain), 1-Allan Dell
Replacements: 16-Fraser Brown, 17-Gordon Reid, 18-Simon Berghan, 19-Jonny Gray, 20-Josh Strauss, 21-Greig Laidlaw, 22-Adam Hastings, 23-Chris Harris
Rooney's club record
At Everton Appearances: 77; Goals: 17
At Manchester United Appearances: 559; Goals: 253
Company profile
Date started: December 24, 2018
Founders: Omer Gurel, chief executive and co-founder and Edebali Sener, co-founder and chief technology officer
Based: Dubai Media City
Number of employees: 42 (34 in Dubai and a tech team of eight in Ankara, Turkey)
Sector: ConsumerTech and FinTech
Cashflow: Almost $1 million a year
Funding: Series A funding of $2.5m with Series B plans for May 2020
The biog
Name: Salem Alkarbi
Age: 32
Favourite Al Wasl player: Alexandre Oliveira
First started supporting Al Wasl: 7
Biggest rival: Al Nasr
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
UAE%20Warriors%2045%20Results
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