Lakestar SPAC, the first tech-focused European SPAC, is poised to become one of the first special purpose acquisition companies in Europe to complete the business combination with a target company. Lakestar SPAC announced on July 14 that it had signed an agreement to take travel tech startup HomeToGo public on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in the first German deal of its kind. The deal, valuing Berlin-based HomeToGo at an equity value of €1.2 billion ($1.4 billion) and an enterprise value of €861 million, will set the scene for European de-SPAC transactions.
HomeToGo is a marketplace for vacation rentals that connects travelers with online travel agents and independent landlords.
In February,
Lakestar SPAC I raised €275 million in a S&C-advised private share placement and was listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Lakestar was the first SPAC IPO in Germany in over a decade, the largest SPAC IPO ever in Germany, at the time, and one of the first transactions outside the United States to mirror traditional U.S.-style structure in all relevant aspects. It was sponsored by German venture capitalist Dr. Klaus Hommels, founder and chairman of Lakestar Advisors.
The S&C team advising Lakestar SPAC includes Frankfurt partners Carsten Berrar, Konstantin Technau and Clemens Rechberger as well as associates Stephan Rauch, Johannes Hieronymi, Moritz Reichenbach and Frederic Dreher.