Spac27 Oct 2020 12:02
By Bhargav Acharya
Oct 27 (Reuters) - London-based Genius Sports Group Ltd said on Tuesday it would go public through a merger with New York-listed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) dMY Technology Group Inc II ( DMYD ?Loading...), joining the bandwagon of firms accessing markets via SPAC deals.
Genius Sports, which acquires data from sports events and supplies it to sports betting operators, said the deal, which is valued at about $1.5 billion including debt, is expected to close in Q1 2021.
The company maintains partnerships with over 500 sports organisations globally, including the NBA, NCAA, FIBA, FIFA, English Premier League and NASCAR.
"We chose a SPAC deal to help us list quickly and minimise distractions to the daily running of the business," CEO Mark Locke said in a phone interview, when asked why the company chose not to pursue a traditional IPO.