Circle, a Goldman Sachs-backed fintech company, officially announced its plans to go public via SPAC merger
Circle has officially announced its plans for an initial public offering (IPO) through a merger with a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) named Concord Acquisition Corp.
Source: Circle Internet Financial
Stablecoin firm Circle is merging with blank cheque company Concord Acquisition Group
Under the terms of the deal, a new Irish holding company acquires both Concord and Circle to become a publicly-traded entity that is expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker “CRCL”. Existing shareholders will keep hold of roughly 86% of the shares in the combined company.
The deal values Circle at $4.5 billion and comes after Circle raised $440 million from major investors including Fidelity, Valor Capital Group, and London-based hedge fund Marshall Wace in May. The newly merged entity will be supported by $415 million in capital commitments at $10 per share, with investment from Marshall Wace, Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC, and Adage Capital Management LP.
Circle co-founder and CEO, Jeremy Allaire will remain the company’s CEO. In addition, Concord chairman Bob Diamond will hold a seat on the board. According to the announcement, the transaction has been unanimously approved by the boards of both Concord and Circle and is expected to close in the last quarter of 2021.
Diamond touted Circle as one of the most exciting companies in the transformation of finance in a statement. Its business has grown alongside the supply of USDC, having built out API services to help businesses engage with the stablecoin business. The total supply of USDC recently surpassed $20 billion. Circle makes money from the dollar reserves that underpin the stablecoin.
“Circle was founded with a mission to transform the global economic system through the power of digital currencies and the open internet,” said Allaire.
He added that the listing would give Circle the capital and relationships it needs to build an Internet financial services company on a global scale. This can help businesses everywhere connect to a more open, inclusive, and efficient global economic system.
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