Philadelphia-based blank check company Ibere Pharmaceuticals completes $120M IPO
A Philadelphia-based blank check company formed to pursue acquisitions in the life sciences industry has completed a $120 million initial public stock offering.
Ibere Pharmaceuticals sold 12 million units at $10 per unit on Friday. Each unit consisted of one Class A ordinary share of the company and one-half of one redeemable warrant, with each whole warrant entitling the holder to purchase one Class A ordinary share at a price of $11.50 per share.
The stock, listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “IBERU,” opened Monday at $10.05 per share.
Ibere’s CEO isĀ Osagie Imasogie, the co-founder and senior managing partner of the Philadelphia private equity firm PIPV Capital. Imasogie is also board chairman of Zelira Therapeutics, a therapeutic medicinal cannabis company that has operations in Philadelphia and Australia. He was previously founder and former chairman of Iroko Pharmaceuticals, which was based in South Philadelphia.
In documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Ibere noted its sponsor, PIPV Capital, agreed to purchase an aggregate of 4,075,000 warrants for $4,075,000 in a private placement that closed simultaneously with the IPO. Each warrant is exercisable to purchase one Class A ordinary share at $11.50 per share.
Ibere’s listed address of 2005 Market St., the headquarters for PIPV Capital.
In its SEC filing, Ibere stated it was formed “for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization, or similar business combination with one or more businesses.” The company added that while it may pursue an acquisition opportunity in any business or industry, it “intends to focus on opportunities in the pharmaceutical and life sciences industries.”
Blank check companies are also known as special purpose acquisition companies or SPACs.
Raymond James & Associates is the sole book-running manager for the offering. The company has granted underwriters a 45-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,800,000 units at the initial public offering price to cover overallotments.