Electric vehicle company Lucid Motors announced plans to go public through a $12B SPAC merger. Lucid, led by former Tesla executive Peter Rawlinson, initially focused on battery production but has since shifted its focus to electric vehicles (including the Lucid Air unveiled last year). The transaction comes amid rapidly increasing competition in the electric vehicle segment, including large-scale investments from traditional automakers (e.g. Toyota and GM) and pure-play EV companies (e.g. Tesla).
More context: A special purpose acquisition company (a “SPAC”) allows companies to become publicly listed by combining with an existing public entity that was created solely for that purpose (i.e. the SPAC). The structure, which surged in popularity last year, provides an alternative to the traditional IPO process.
The New Paper
This story is from the February 23, 2021 edition of The New Paper – a clear, concise daily briefing that makes fact-first news easy to consume. Try it today.
