Israeli data automotive firm Otonomo to go public in $1.4 bln SPAC deal
01/02/2021 12:06
Feb 1 (Reuters) - Israeli automotive data firm Otonomo said
on Monday it would merge with a blank-check company to go public
at a valuation of $1.4 billion.
The deal with Software Acquisition Group Inc II SAII.O is
expected to fetch Otonomo $307 million in cash, including a
$172.5 million private investment from investors such as
Fidelity Management & Research Co and BNP Paribas Asset
Management Energy.
The combined company would be listed on Nasdaq under the
symbol "OTMO".
The startup sources data from over 20 million vehicles,
according to its website. Companies can use the data to develop
apps and services for fleets, smart cities and individual
consumers. Otonomo's partners include Daimler AG, Mitsubishi
Motor Co, BMW and Avis Budget Group.
Otonomo raised $46 million in a funding round in April last
year. The funding included investments from Avis Budget Group,
South Korean conglomerate SK Holdings, Alliance Ventures and
Bessemer Venture Partners.
Otonomo was founded in 2015 by Ben Volkow, who serves as its
Chief Executive Officer.
Blank-check companies are shell companies that use proceeds
from an initial public offering to take private firms public.
They raised more than $82 billion in IPOs in 2020, more than
four times the amount raised in 2019, according to data from
Dealogic.
Ad firm Taboola and electric vehicle maker Faraday Future
are some of the companies which have joined the SPAC frenzy this
year.
Software Acquisition went public in a $150 million IPO in
September last year.
Citigroup acted as the financial adviser to Otonomo.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini
Ganguli)
((Niket.Nishant@thomsonreuters.com;))