Ares Acquisition II, the second blank check company formed by Ares Management, raised $450 million by offering 45 million units at $10. The company offered 5 million more units than anticipated. Each unit consists of one share of common stock and one-half of a warrant, exercisable at $11.50.
Ares Acquisition II is the first blank check IPO to price in the second quarter, as well as the second to upsize its offering this year. By this time in 2022, 58 blank check IPOs had raised $9.3 billion, which was still a massive decline year-over-year from 2021. For advanced screening capabilities, sign up for a free trial of IPO Pro, the platform that gives you all of the IPO and SPAC information you need, all in one place.
The company is led by CEO and Co-Chairman David Kaplan and Co-Chairman Michael Arougheti, co-founders of Ares Management where they serve as Partner and CEO, respectively. The company plans to target businesses in North America, Europe, or Asia with differentiated and sustainable business models with defensible market positions, strong culture, and attractive growth prospects, among other characteristics.
Management's previous SPAC, Ares Acquisition (AAC; +4% from $10 offer price), went public in February 2021 and has a pending merger agreement with nuclear reactor developer X-energy.
Ares Acquisition II plans to list on the NYSE under the symbol AACT.U. Citi and UBS Investment Bank acted as joint bookrunners on the deal.
