Blank Check IPO Filing: Hydra Industries

Investing

Published: August 20, 2014 4:07 pm

Last Updated: August 21, 2014 6:52 am

Hydra Industries Acquisition Corp. has filed for an initial public offering (IPO) as of August 19. The offering is 10 million units, which are valued at $100 million. The company plans on listing on the Nasdaq as HDRAU. The price for each of the securities is $10 and it consists of one share and one warrant, which is usually what you see with securities offerings in the world of blank check companies and special purpose acquisition vehicles. Each warrant allows for the purchase of one half of a share at $5.75.

What you will see here is that this is being run by former officers of Scientific Games Corp. (NASDAQ: SGMS).

The sole book-running manager for the IPO is UBS Investment Bank, and the co-manager is EarlyBirdCapital Inc.

Hydra is considered a “blank check” company that is primarily focused in acquisitions. The management team is comprised of the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO), A. Lorne Weil, who built Scientific Games and has experience in the worldwide gaming and lottery markets. Jeffrey S. Lipkin holds the roles of the executive vice president, chief financial officer (CFO) and chief operating officer (COO). As CFO for Scientific Games, Lipkin worked with Weil sourcing and executing all joint mergers and acquisitions during their tenure. Martin E. Schloss takes the roles of executive vice president, general counsel and secretary. He acted as the general counsel for Scientific Gaming with his focus on the company’s mergers and acquisitions.

It stated in the press release:

While we may pursue an acquisition opportunity in any business, industry sector, or geographical location, we intend to focus on industries that complement our management team’s background, and to capitalize on our management team’s track record to identify, acquire and operate businesses.

What is obvious here is that, while blank check companies can go after any sector, management has broad experience in technology behind gaming. If we had to make a bet, it seems fair to expect that Hydra and its management team will be concentrating on a company that is tied to the gaming and gambling sector.

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