VELO3D confirms it is going public via SPAC Merger with Jaws
Deal valued at $1.6 billion
As initially reported on March 12th, support-less metal L-PBF 3D printer maker VELO3D is the next company to go public via a SPAC merger, with Jaws Spitfire Acquisition Corp. Upon completion of the transaction, which is expected to occur in the second half of 2021, the combined company will operate as VELO3D and will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbol VLD.
Velo3D has been raising significant funding and is the only new-entry Western metal PBF 3D printer manufacturer to make it into the mainstream, where current industry leaders (GE Additive, 3D Systems, EOS and SLM Solutions) dominate the market. The company did so by introducing software-run capabilities to significantly reduce or even eliminate the number of supports necessary to 3D print the most intricate geometries, thus making L-PBF more competitive with other emerging processes. Supports are one of the biggest limitations in automating a production AM workflow based on metal L-PBF 3D printing. Since launching commercially in the fourth quarter of 2018, the Company has serviced innovative customers including SpaceX, Honeywell, Boom Supersonic, Chromalloy and Lam Research.
“VELO3D partners with the world’s most innovative companies leading the future of space travel, transportation and energy,” said founder and CEO Benny Buller. “I am proud that such visionary partners continue to trust VELO3D to build products through methods that were previously impossible. With JAWS Spitfire’s long-term partnership, we expect to extend the reach of VELO3D’s technology and bring its solutions to even more customers globally. As we scale our business and advance our growth strategy, we expect to expand the high value metal additive manufacturing market and strengthen our competitive position.”
Investors included Piva, the venture capital investment arm of Malaysia’s Petronas; Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corp.; Bessemer Venture Partners; Playground and Khosla Ventures. Velo3D said at the time the fresh capital will help it “reach sustainable profitability by mid-2022.”
Jaws Spitfire, led by Sternlicht as chairman and CEO Matthew Walters, raised $345 million in a December initial public offering and said it expects to focus on growth-oriented consumer-technology and related businesses. Tennis legend Serena Williams is on the board.
While SPAC mergers were considered as a “cheap” way to go public until a short time ago, they have been booming recently, after Desktop Metal became the first 3D printing company to announce such a deal and proving it could work well to raise capital and rapidly implement an expansion strategy. It was followed in this by its fiercest competitor, Markforged, and by a number of other companies active in segments, such as 3D printing and the space industry, that more and more people now expect could rapidly evolve into big opportunities as the entire World goes through a Pandemic-accelerated change in global supply chains and businesses.
the $10.00 per share PIPE subscription price and assuming no public shareholders of JAWS Spitfire exercise their redemption rights. The Company will receive up to $345 million in proceeds from JAWS Spitfire’s cash in trust and a $155 million private placement of common stock at a $10.00 per share value. The private placement is led by strategic and institutional investors, including Baron Capital Group and Hedosophia. Upon completion of the transaction, VELO3D is set to benefit from a flexible capital structure with approximately $470 million of cash on the Company’s balance sheet, net of debt and assuming no redemptions are effected.
