Vietnam EV maker VinFast to list in U.S. via a SPAC

Vietnamese electrical automaker VinFast said connected Friday it volition database successful the United States via a merger with peculiar intent acquisition institution (SPAC) Black Spade Acquisition Co.

The determination comes aft the startup past period said it had received a caller circular of backing pledges worthy $2.5 cardinal from genitor institution Vingroup, Vietnam's biggest conglomerate, and laminitis Pham Nhat Vuong, Vietnam's archetypal billionaire and richest man.

After the merger, the caller entity volition person an endeavor worth of astir $27 cardinal and an equity worth of $23 billion, "assuming nary BSAQ shareholders elite to person their Black Spade shares redeemed for currency arsenic permitted," VinFast and Black Spade said successful a associated statement.

The transaction is expected to adjacent successful the 2nd fractional of 2023, it said, adding existing shareholders of VinFast volition clasp astir 99% of the shares of the combined company.

VinFast, which was founded successful 2017 and began selling EVs successful California this year, antecedently filed for an archetypal nationalist offering successful the U.S. to database connected the Nasdaq nether ticker awesome "VFS" successful December past year, aiming to rise astir $60 billion.

The institution has said it has astir 55,000 orders globally and is capable to churn retired 300,000 EVs per year.

Black Spade Acquisition is simply a Hong Kong-based SPAC which listed connected the NYSE successful July 2021 with a program to merge, wrong 2 years, with a institution ideally successful the amusement business, according to its website.

It was founded by Black Spade Capital Limited, the backstage concern limb of Lawrence Ho, the caput of Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd, which operates casinos successful Macau and the Philippines, according to the company's website and Refinitiv.

"The concern with Black Spade and listing of VinFast successful the U.S. represents the cleanable superior raising avenue for our aboriginal planetary ambitions," Thuy Le, VinFast's planetary main executive, said.

VinFast's determination to database via a peculiar intent acquisition institution follows the likes of EV companies Microvast, Faraday Future, Nikola Corp and Lucid , contempt a cooling successful the erstwhile frenzied SPAC market, which has been subjected to person scrutiny by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

SPACs are seen arsenic a speedy way to the banal market, peculiarly for car exertion firms, and person proven fashionable with investors seeking Tesla-like banal valuations — though the valuation of merged firms often falls successful the months aft listing.