AVN cancels planned SPAC Nasdaq listing

AVN, a subsidiary of media company PT MNC Vision Networks, had planned to list its shares on Nasdaq through a merger with Malacca Straits Acquisition Company, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that trades on Nasdaq as MLAC. (File ic gives a view of the exterior of the Nasdaq market site in the Manhattan borough of New York City.)

JAKARTA: PT Asia Vision Network (AVN) has called off a merger with a blank cheque company and thus also scrapped a plan to list its shares through on Nasdaq, the United States stock exchange popular among technology companies.

AVN, a subsidiary of media company PT MNC Vision Networks, had planned to list its shares on Nasdaq through a merger with Malacca Straits Acquisition Company, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that trades on Nasdaq as MLAC.

MNC Vision Networks corporate secretary Muharzi Hasril said AVN decided to cancel its planned merger and listing because of a fall in share prices, due to an overcrowded market and this year’s boom in SPAC transactions on Nasdaq.

“After various road shows, MLAC and AVN finally agreed not to proceed with the transaction,” Muharzi said in a written statement.

“Another factor that led to this decision is the increasing interest from investors on the Indonesian bourse in digital companies, which is part of AVN’s business focus. “Prior to announcing its cancelled listing plans, the combined value of AVN and MLAC shares was an estimated US$573mil (RM2.4bil).

The SPAC transaction would have achieved net proceeds of around US$135mil (RM566mil) for AVN, assuming that the public shareholders of Hong Kong-based Malacca Straits did not redeem their shares or adjust the purchase price. SPAC IPO transactions have attracted growing interest among Indonesian companies over the past year as an alternative to initial public offerings (IPOs), as they come with less stringent public disclosure requirements for the operating company.

The Indonesia Stock Exchange or IDX announced plans to relax its rules this year to permit SPAC transactions in an effort to lure homegrown unicorn start-ups. — The Jakarta Post/ANN