Jiya Acquisition, a blank check company formed by Samsara BioCapital targeting the biopharmaceutical sector, filed on Monday with the SEC to raise up to $100 million in an initial public offering.
The Palo Alto, CA-based company plans to raise $100 million by offering 10 million shares at $10. Unlike an ordinary SPAC, Jiya Acquisition is not offering units with warrants attached. The company may raise an additional $25 million at the closing of an acquisition pursuant to a forward purchase agreement with Samsara BioCapital. At the proposed deal size, Jiya Acquisition would command a market value of $130 million.
The company is led by Chairman Srinivas Akkaraju, founder and Managing General Partner of Samsara BioCapital and a former General Partner at Sofinnova Ventures, and CEO and Director Rekha Hemrajani, who has held various executive roles in the healthcare industry, most recently CEO of clinical-stage biopharma Aravive.
Jiya Acquisition was founded in 2020 and plans to list on the Nasdaq under the symbol JYAC. The company filed confidentially on September 24, 2020. Citi is the sole bookrunner on the deal.
