When 3D Printing Mergers Collapse: Essentium SPAC Fallout with Collider
(3DPrint.com PRO is available only to subscribers)
Before investors pulled the rug out from mergers with special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), 2021 was a record-breaking year as 604 blank-check deals raised $144 billion. The timing was crucial for 3D printing businesses, with many of them finding ideal opportunities to merge with publicly traded shell corporations to go public. Among them was Essentium. Had the deal been finalized, the Texas-based industrial 3D printing solutions provider would have seen its valuation reach close to $1 billion.
Just like dozens of other companies, Essentium’s deal went sour as the market deteriorated in the back half of 2021. Essentium and the SPAC company, Atlantic Coastal Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: ACAH), decided to terminate the deal, and the startup’s plans for rapid expansion stalled. As a result, Essentium lost another deal. This time with Collider, a startup that officially came out of stealth mode in 2016 with its hybrid Programmable Tooling technology and Orchid 3D printer.
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