Singapore's Asia Innovations Group plans U.S. listing via $2.5 bln SPAC merger (updated)

Magnum Opus Acquisition

30/09/2022 06:50

(Adds company background, SPAC details, CEO quote, data)
    By Roxanne Liu and Kane Wu
       BEIJING/HONG KONG, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Singapore-based
mobile app developer Asia Innovations Group Limited (ASIG) said
on Friday it would go public through a merger with a blank-check
firm in a deal that values the combined entity at $2.5 billion.
    The move by ASIG to merge with special purpose acquisition
company (SPAC) Magnum Opus Acquisition Ltd  OPA.N  would bring
estimated gross proceeds of $200 million in cash, which Magnum
Opus raised via its own initial public offering in May 2021.
    Magnum Opus last year signed a $630 million deal with Forbes
that would have taken the magazine publisher public, but the
transaction was terminated by Forbes in June.
    ASIG, which runs live-streaming app Uplive and e-commerce
platform Hekka, is also targeting up to $150 million from an
additional capital raising as part of the merger process, it
said in a statement.     
    The funds will support growth of ASIG's products as well as 
acquisition opportunities, ASIG said.
    "Even though the macro global environment is challenging,
ASIG's focus on emerging markets can benefit from the continued
growth of many emerging market regions, compared to mature
markets," ASIG Chief Executive Andy Tian told Reuters on Friday.
    The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of
2023, pending regulatory approvals, the company said. 
    SPACs are shell firms that raise money from institutional
and retail investors via market listings, and put it in a trust
for the purpose of merging with a private company and taking it
public.
    They were among the hottest investment trends during the
pandemic as early-stage companies tapped them as a way of going
public but increasing scrutiny by U.S. regulators has resulted
in a decline of SPAC IPOs and consequent mergers.
        The value of SPAC mergers has shrunk to $77 billion
globally so far this year amid volatile global markets, compared
with $494 billion in the same period in 2021, Refinitiv data
showed.
    ASIG operates an integrated platform of products designed
for mobile devices across social, mobile gaming, e-commerce, and
payments, including live social dating apps Lamour and CuteU.
    As of end-2021, it had more than 400 million registered
users located in 150 countries and regions and its revenue had
more than doubled from the prior year, the company said.
    ASIG has 18 offices worldwide, with more than 1000 employees
from 23 countries across five continents.
    The mobile app developer said it tapped Kirkland & Ellis,
Evercore, Incentrum Securities and XCap Partners to advise it on
the merger, while White & Case advised Magnum Opus.
    A spokesperson for Magnum Opus, led by former Point72
executive Jonathan Lin, did not respond immediately to a request
for comment on the merger plan.
 (Reporting by Roxanne Liu in Beijing and Kane Wu in Hong Kong;
Editing by Jamie Freed)
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