January closed with 34 IPOs, a strong showing for the historically slow month for new issues. However, coming off the busiest 18-month stretch the IPO market has ever seen, 34 deals represent a slowing of the market’s momentum. It was the lowest monthly total for IPOs since May 2020. Couple that with a sharp uptick in withdrawals—21 during the month—and it is beginning to look like the market may finally be coming to the end of its incredible run. Activity was still steady last week with seven completed offerings, three by blank check companies (SIC 6770). Alset Capital Acquisition, Blue World Acquisition, Murphy Canyon Acquisition, and Kimbell Tiger Acquisition went public last week. SIC 6770 accounts for 27 of the year’s 39 IPOs through the first week in February. Israel’s Maris-Tech made its U.S. public market debut, raising $15.5 million for the development of video and audio surveillance systems. The healthcare industry saw IPOs by drug developers Nuvectis Pharma and Arcellx. Arcellx began trading 28 days after publicly registering. The average number of days in registration for IPO companies since December 1 is 78.
New registrants. The week’s activity included five new registrations. Australian online publishing platform operator Locafy filed plans for a U.S. market debut. Australia was home to three IPO companies in 2021 after two in the previous five years combined. Akanda, which is headquartered in England but incorporated in Canada, is looking to raise $24 million in a U.S. IPO. Akanda is a cannabis cultivation, manufacturing, and distribution company. It was incorporated in 2021 in connection with Halo Collective’s reorganization of its international business assets. SIC 6770 added new registrants Prime Number Acquisition I, Seven Oaks Acquisition II, and Global Robotic Drone Acquisition. Prime Number will target tech-enabled financial companies, while Seven Oaks will pursue companies with strong ESG practices. New Zealand-headquartered Global Robotic Drone will seek to merge with a drone technology partner. The last IPO in the U.S. by a New Zealand company was in 2001. January finished with 48 preliminary registrations, nearly 100 fewer than the 145 filed last January.
Withdrawals. Three blank check companies withdrew their IPO registration statements last week. March 2021 public registrants Falcon Capital Acquisition II, Healthcare Merger II, and Rocket Global Acquisition each decided to back away from their IPO plans. Overall, 21 companies withdrew in January, 15 of which were blank check companies. In one month, the market has seen nearly half (45 percent) of the total number of Forms RW filed in 2021 (47).
The information reported here is gathered using IPO Vital Signs, a Wolters Kluwer Regulatory U.S. database that includes all SEC registered IPOs, including REITs and those non-U.S. IPO filers seeking to list in the U.S. markets. IPO Vital Signs does not track closed-end funds, best efforts or non-underwritten deals, or IPO offerings for amounts less than $5 million.
For comprehensive coverage of today’s news, go to the Securities Legal Research & News section of VitalLaw.