Singapore-based private equity firm Novo Tellus Capital Partners is said to have received permission from the city state’s stock exchange to list its blank-cheque company, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, quoting people with knowledge of the matter.
The buyout firm is said to have gotten the so-called eligibility-to-list letter last month for its special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), according to the people. Novo Tellus Acquisition Corp plans to raise $110 million to $147.4 million (S$150 million – S$200 million) from an initial public offering, they reportedly said.
Novo Tellus, which focused on investments in Southeast Asia’s technology and industrials market, aims to file its preliminary prospectus this month. Deliberations, however, are still ongoing and the timing and details could change, the people added. SGX and Novo Tellus have yet to respond to TechNode Global‘s query.
Novo Tellus could be among the first wave of sponsors looking to list SPACs in Singapore after the regulators introduced a framework in September last year, according to Bloomberg. Vertex Venture Holdings, a unit of Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings, became the first to win an approval. Bloomberg News earlier reported that European asset manager Tikehau Capital SCA also got the letter.
“SGX’s SPAC framework will give companies an alternative capital fundraising route with greater certainty on price and execution. We want the SPAC process to result in good target companies listed on SGX, providing investors with more choice and opportunities,” Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) Chief Executive Officer Tan Boon Gin said in a statement when the exchange introduce the SPAC framework in September.
Elsewhere in neighboring Malaysia, the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) announced last month the revisions to the Equity Guidelines in the enhanced SPAC framework to facilitate greater access to fundraising in Malaysia, part of its ongoing efforts to promote the development of the Malaysian capital market.
“The SC re-evaluated the SPAC framework to ensure that it remains relevant and capable of spurring interest in listings and deals involving SPACs, thereby providing issuers with greater access to the capital market,” said SC Chairman Datuk Syed Zaid Albar said in the statement then. The revised SPAC framework will take effect on Jan 1, 2022.