WM Holding Company – the parent of Weedmaps – is set to go public through a merger with Silver Spike Acquisition Corp. The deal values Weedmaps at $1.5 billion.
WMH Chief Executive Chris Beals, who will lead the combined company, told Reuters that when investors “look at what [the company] is offering, there’s really not too much else like it.”
“With this merger, we will be able to continue scaling the Weedmaps marketplace in the U.S. and internationally in service of our users while expanding the functionality of our WM Business SaaS offerings in service of our clients. Our partnership with Silver Spike will provide us a stronger platform to advance our mission to advocate for legalization, social equity and licensing in many jurisdictions while providing cannabis businesses with the tools needed to succeed in a highly complex world of regulations.” – Beals in a statement
Weedmaps expects to receive gross proceeds of up to $575 million from the deal, it said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, in part from Silver Spike-raised funds and through $325 million in a private investment in public equity, or PIPE, transaction, which includes funds from the Federated Hermes Kaufmann Funds, Senvest Management LLC, and AFV Partners, the company said.
In the SEC filing, Weedmaps indicated it has a CAGR of 40 percent over the last five years and estimates $160 million in revenue and $35 million in EBITDA for this year.
Scott Gordon, CEO and Chairman of Silver Spike, said the publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company believes Weedmaps “is the most compelling investment opportunity in cannabis today.”
Silver Spike raised $250 million in a Nasdaq initial public offering in August 2019 with plans to buy a cannabis-related company.
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