Goldman Sachs SPAC IPO: Liberty Lane Acquisition Corp. (GS, MFW, LKQX, TMO)

Liberty Lane Acquisition Corp., another special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, has filed to come public via an initial public offering of $350 million in units.  Each unit will come with one share and one-half of a warrant with a strike price of $7.50 per share.  It does note that it will list on the American Stock Exchange, but does not list a ticker.

What is interesting here besides the unit only having one-half of a warrant is that this is a Goldman Sachs & Co. (NYSE: GS) underwriting.  There had been many reports that Goldman Sachs was getting into the SPAC game, and now we have it.

This is a blank check company that was formed on March 7, 2008.  It does not list any industry nor any geographic preferences.  The company is led by Paul M. Montrone and Paul M. Meister, who have operated as a cohesive unit for more than a decade with experience acquiring and operating businesses across a broad range of industries.

We frequently cover SPAC issues and back door plays in IPO’s on our open email distribution list and have many such companies under review for our Special Situation Investing Newsletter.

Mr. Meister is a director of M & F Worldwide Corp. (NYSE: MFW) and LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ: LKQX).  Both officers also have non-compete agreements in place with Fisher Scientific, part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. (NYSE: TMO).  The officers officers have a contractual obligation to present to Liberty Lane Partners any opportunities that could be taken by Liberty Lane Partners or its affiliates, and the current portfolio companies include the following:

• Prestolite Wire, a manufacturer and supplier of wiring and other products to the auto, consumer appliance and other industries.
• Mr. Gasket, a manufacturer and supplier of products to the auto, marine, consumer appliance and other markets.
• Sign Supply USA, a supplier of equipment, consumables, electronic and other supplies to the sign and electronic display markets.
• East West Plastic and Electronic Products Corp., a supplier of equipment, consumables, electronic and other supplies to the Canadian sign and electronic display market.
• Emerson Ecologics, a supplier of nutritional and herbal supplements, medical supplies, veterinary and other products to the consumer, retail and professional markets.

Jon C. Ogg
March 25, 2008

Jon Ogg can be reached at [email protected]; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.