Sneaker enthusiast media firm Hypebeast gets Tom Brady and Jonah Hill as investors in US$353 million US SPAC merger

Tennis star Naomi Osaka, Hollywood actor Jonah Hill and American football player Tom Brady will be among Hypebeast’s new investors after merger with US SPAC

Merging with the Nasdaq blank-cheque company Iron Spark will give the Hong Kong-listed media firm a New York listing and up to US$167 million in cash

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The homepage of Hypebeast, founded as a blog about sneakers, which has transformed into an e-commerce company. Photo: Captured from online

Published: 12:00pm, 5 Apr 2022Updated: 12:36pm, 5 Apr 2022

Hypebeast, a media-cum-e-commerce platform that focuses on fashion and design, said it will merge with US special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Iron Spark in a deal that will value it at US$352.7 million, including debt, with a second listing on the Nasdaq.

Listed in Hong Kong since 2016, Hypebeast disclosed the merger in a stock exchange announcement on Monday. The merger with the SPAC will also inject up to US$167 million in cash into the firm, which was raised by the blank-cheque company from its Nasdaq initial public offering in June 2021.

Hypebeast has become one of the first Hong Kong-listed companies to seek a second listing in New York through a SPAC, rather than through a traditional IPO pitching its business directly to public investors. SPACs are shell companies created by promoters to raise financial war chests through a share sale to investors, using the proceeds to buy assets within a limited period of time.

“The Iron Spark team brings us knowledge that could help our business reach the next level,” said Hypebeast founder and CEO Kevin Ma. “A listing in the US would also help us engage with our audience there.”

As part of the deal, Hypebeast has also entered into an agreement with several private investors, including multiple celebrities, who together will invest about US$13.3 million worth of Hypebeast shares, subject to the completion of the merger.

The investors include tennis star Naomi Osaka, American football player Tom Brady, and actor Jonah Hill, who played the character Donnie Azoff in the movie The Wolf of Wall Street, according to Ma. The private investors will together own about 2.5 per cent of the merged company, according to the stock exchange announcement.

Started as an online blog about collectible sneakers in 2005, Hypebeast has since developed into an e-commerce platform that sells streetwear and high-end fashion. It boasts over 26 million social media followers and 15.6 million monthly visitors.