Hony Capital-backed SPAC looks to raise $300 mln in U.S. IPO

A blank-check firm backed by Hony Capital, which has investments in TikTok owner ByteDance and WeWork’s China unit, is aiming to raise $300 million in an U.S. initial public offering, according to a regulatory filing on Wednesday.

Hony Capital Acquisition Corp, the special purpose acquisition company, will sell 300 million units, made up of shares and warrants, at $10 apiece.

A SPAC is a shell firm that raises money in an IPO before merging with a privately held company to take the latter public. The new trend is set to take hold in Asia with more than a dozen SPACs on the hunt for fast-growing technology firms that are ready to go public.

Hong Kong tycoon Richard Li, venture capitalist Peter Thiel, Chinese buyout firm CITIC Capital, Singapore-based healthcare entrepreneur David Sin and former hedge fund manager George Raymond Zage are among a growing list of backers of SPACs.

The SPAC backed by Hony Capital, one of China’s biggest private-equity firms, will look to merge with technology-enabled companies that have a significant presence in China, mainly in sectors such as healthcare and consumer products, according to the filing.

Citigroup and Credit Suisse are underwriters on the offering. 

The SPAC will list its units on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “HCAA.U”.

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