Dubai-based investment bank Shuaa Capital has filed request with the US market regulator to launch the initial public offering of one of its three planned $200-million special purpose acquisition companies.
“Shuaa has lately filed a registration statement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for the launch of a $100m to $200m Spac to be listed on Nasdaq,” the company said in a statement to the Dubai Financial Market, where its shares are traded.
“Shuaa is now going through the final regulatory approvals following which a decision will be made to IPO the Spac.”
It did not say which sector the planned Spac will target for acquisitions or when the IPO is expected to be launched.
In July last year, Shuaa announced plans to set up three Spacs with capital of $200m each to tap the growing market for blank-cheque companies, as they are known.
A Spac is a vehicle with no commercial operations that is formed with the intention of raising funds through an IPO and then acquiring an existing company. Spacs have lighter disclosure requirements than IPOs and have been increasingly used over the past two years to take fast-growing companies public quickly.
The number of Spac listings climbed to a record 613 on Nasdaq last year, raising a total of $145 billion, a 91 per cent jump from the amount raised in 2020. Spacs played a large part in the US IPO record last year of 1,033, representing more than 59 per cent of total new listings, an increase from about 53 per cent share in 2020, Nasdaq chief economist Phil Mackintosh said in a note last month.
Spacs are also increasingly becoming popular in the Middle East. Abu Dhabi Global Market-headquartered Anghami, the music streaming rival of Spotify in the Arab world, successfully listed Nasdaq last week.
The listing follows Anghami’s deal with Spac Vitas Media Acquisition Company, which was set up in 2020. Shuaa also invested an undisclosed amount in Anghami’s fund-raising.
Dubai-based Swvl is set to become the second technology start-up from the region to list on the Nasdaq through a Spac merger with a valuation of $1.5bn. The Cairo-founded mass transit and shared mobility services provider is merging with Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital, the first Spac to be led entirely by women, it said in July last year.
Forbes Media and Virgin Orbit, which is backed by Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Company, are among the major global companies planning to list on the Nasdaq through Spac mergers.
Shuaa, which has assets of nearly $14bn under management, reported a surge in its nine-month profit driven by recurring revenues and strong performance by its public markets fund.
Net profit for the January-September period rose to Dh89m, up more than 39 per cent on an annualised basis, the company said at the time.
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
The years Ramadan fell in May
The biog
Name: Greg Heinricks
From: Alberta, western Canada
Record fish: 56kg sailfish
Member of: International Game Fish Association
Company: Arabian Divers and Sportfishing Charters
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
Mica
Director: Ismael Ferroukhi
Stars: Zakaria Inan, Sabrina Ouazani
3 stars
Match info
Premier League
Manchester United 2 (Martial 30', Lingard 69')
Arsenal 2 (Mustafi 26', Rojo 68' OG)
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
MATCH INFO
Chelsea 4 (Mount 18',Werner 44', Hudson-Odoi 49', Havertz 85')
Morecambe 0
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
How%20to%20avoid%20getting%20scammed
%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3ENever%20click%20on%20links%20provided%20via%20app%20or%20SMS%2C%20even%20if%20they%20seem%20to%20come%20from%20authorised%20senders%20at%20first%20glance%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EAlways%20double-check%20the%20authenticity%20of%20websites%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EEnable%20Two-Factor%20Authentication%20(2FA)%20for%20all%20your%20working%20and%20personal%20services%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EOnly%20use%20official%20links%20published%20by%20the%20respective%20entity%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EDouble-check%20the%20web%20addresses%20to%20reduce%20exposure%20to%20fake%20sites%20created%20with%20domain%20names%20containing%20spelling%20errors%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
The specs: 2018 Maserati Ghibli
Price, base / as tested: Dh269,000 / Dh369,000
Engine: 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged V6
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 355hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 500Nm @ 4,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.9L / 100km
