Billionaire Chamath Palihapitiya filed to raise $250 million for a DeFi-based blank-check company, “American Exceptionalism Acquisition Corp A.”
Chamath Palihapitiya, a billionaire and an early Bitcoin BTC $122 441 24h volatility: 1.9% Market cap: $2.44 T Vol. 24h: $69.70 B investor, has filed with the appropriate authorities to raise $250 million in a blank-check company, “American Exceptionalism Acquisition Corp A.”
Judging by his interest, the billionaire has his focus on decentralized finance (DeFi), artificial intelligence (AI), energy, and defense sectors.
Palihapitiya Returns to the SPAC Space
American Exceptionalism is a prospective special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that billionaire Palihapitiya is currently eyeing.
As of now, he has applied to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to raise $250 million for the SPAC.
The plan is to have Social Capital managing partner Steven Trieu lead the SPAC as CEO while Palihapitiya serves as chairman.
In its registration statement, which was sent to the regulator on Monday, Palihapitiya explained clearly how the $250 million will be utilized. It will go live on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker AEXA, and it will offer 25 million shares at $10 each.
In addition to serving on Facebook’s executive board, Palihapitiya has been a strong proponent of BTC, advocating strongly for its use as a hedge against inflation.
However, it is worth noting that the largest cryptocurrency by market cap, Bitcoin, is not the focus of this latest move.
Rather, the incoming Chairman and his CEO for the SPAC are about DeFi’s capacity to spearhead the next financial innovation wave.
The focus is on solutions that can close the gap between traditional finance (TradFi) and blockchain technology.
“….. we believe that the next stage of development is the increased integration between traditional finance and decentralized finance,” Trieu pointed out.
This isn’t Palihapitiya’s first SPAC. He’s been in the game long enough to call himself the “SPAC King” after launching over 10 of them, attracting billions from eager investors looking to fund ambitious projects.
Unfortunately, the harsh market conditions and rising interest rates in 2022 built a wedge against this project, and that marked Palihapitiya’s gradual withdrawal from the scene.
However, the situation is quite different in the present day, especially with Donald Trump’s tariffs, which sparked market volatility. This situation has now impacted traditional Initial Public Offerings (IPOs).
Beyond SPAC, Gemini Makes Big IPO Move
Meanwhile, the Winklevoss brothers’ cryptocurrency exchange Gemini recently published its S-1 statement for its listing on Nasdaq.
No mention of an IPO price has been made, only certain details like those listed as its left-lead bookrunner. This includes Goldman Sachs, Citi, Morgan Stanley, and Cantor Fitzgerald, charged with overseeing the offering.
It had first submitted its draft registration for the IPO in June, applying to list its stock on the Nasdaq exchange under the ticker symbol GEMI.
The exchange also has plans to transition a significant fraction of its users to a Moonbase entity that is based in Florida. Gemini Trust will remain in New York, though the region remains a tough space for crypto firms, especially under its BitLicense rules.
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