Morning Roundup: January 19, 2024

At the SPAC of Dawn

Long awaited, the SEC has finally set 10 am ET Wednesday, January 24 as the kickoff of its discussion of its proposed SPAC rules.

The broad strokes of its proposals have been known for nearly two years (SPACInsider broke them down here) and some have already had effects in the market even in the absence of a concrete change. Ever since the SEC proposed extending liability for a SPAC target’s financial projections to the SPAC’s underwriter, future projections have become rarer in SPAC announcements and presentations.

The question of whether SPACs are subject to the rules of the Investment Company Act of 1940 could bring with it a different set of complications for SPACs, however.

Previous rounds of regulatory change whether realized or simply feared have set in a brief freeze in SPAC activity. But, the early signs do not yet indicate that this next week will follow that same tradition.

Another fresh transaction has been announced since the SEC set its schedule, however, two SPACs moved their completion votes from just before the SEC meeting to the weeks after whether by coincidence or not.

Deals and Funding

• Bowen Acquisition Corp (NASDAQ:BOWN) has entered into a merger agreement with Qianzhi Biotech under which the target will receive 7,246,377 ordinary shares in consideration for the deal. The parties expect the deal to close in the second or third quarters of 2024.

News and Rumors

• PR: Industrial power company One Energy announced that it is launching the Daimler eCascadia Class 8 battery to its test fleet for trucking electrification solutions. One Energy announced a business combination with ToroiseEcofin III in August 2023.

Liquidations

Scheduling Notes

• Sizzle (NASDAQ:SZZL) has pushed its meeting to approve its combination with European Lithium to 10 am ET, January 31.
• OceanTech I (NASDAQ:OTEC) is postponing its January 22 special meeting to approve its combination with Regentis Biomaterials to 10:30 am ET February 9.