Bernard Arnault: Europe’s richest man joins SPAC craze

Bernard Arnault: Europe’s richest man joins SPAC craze

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Arnault’s investment management company Financière Agache is teaming up with French asset manager Tikehau Capital and two senior European bankers to launch a special purpose acquisition (SPAC) company looking for transactions in the European financial services sector.

Tikehau Capital said in a statement on Monday that potential targets include asset management platforms, fintech businesses, insurance services and diversified financial services businesses. The focus will be on ‘scalable platforms that offer strong profit growth potential’, he added, indicating that this will be the first of several SPACs he plans.

Jean-Pierre Mustier, former CEO of the Italian bank UniCredit (UNCFF), and Diego De Giorgi, a former head of global investment banking services at Bank of America (BAC) Merrill Lynch, will be the operating partners of the company, Tikehau Capital said.
As GameStop gets confused, one hot part of the market gets even hotter
SPACs, or ‘blank-check’ businesses, raise capital through an IPO to buy existing businesses. They were once an obscure part of the market, but have exploded in popularity. Last year, 229 SPACs in the United States raised $ 76 billion, up from just $ 13 billion in 2019, according to Goldman Sachs. The spate of new documents this year – including from former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and Rocket Internet co-founder Oliver Samwer – indicates that the pace does not disappoint.
While European stock exchanges have largely missed the boom so far, there are early signs that the market in the region is starting to rise.

Tikehau Capital did not provide details on the amount its SPAC wants to raise, saying only that the four sponsors plan to invest at least 10% of the amount. Arnault has a net worth of $ 114 billion, making it the fourth richest person in the world and the richest individual in Europe, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

The SPAC will present in Amsterdam, the latest in a series of victories for the Dutch city’s fair. Euronext Amsterdam is one of the biggest beneficiaries of changes, which means that EU financial institutions will not be able to trade European shares on the British stock exchange after Brexit.

– Julia Horowitz contributed reportg.

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