Casino Magnate Lawrence Ho’s Second SPAC Raises $150 Million, Eyes Merger With AI Company
![Casino Magnate Lawrence Ho’s Second SPAC Raises 0 Million, Eyes Merger With AI Company Casino Magnate Lawrence Ho’s Second SPAC Raises 0 Million, Eyes Merger With AI Company](https://i1.wp.com/imageio.forbes.com/specials-images/imageserve/66d02851afb67b52816e19a8/0x0.jpg?format=jpg&crop=2392,1346,x0,y0,safe&height=900&width=1600&fit=bounds&w=780&resize=780,470&ssl=1)
Lawrence Ho, chairman and CEO of Melco International Development.
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A special purpose acquisition company backed by casino magnate Lawrence Ho began trading on the Nasdaq Wednesday after raising $150 million to target a merger with a company benefiting from the artificial intelligence boom.
Black Spade Acquisition II, formed by Ho’s Hong Kong-based family office Black Spade Capital, said in its prospectus that it plans to acquire a company in the entertainment, lifestyle or technology industries and benefits from AI. The blank-check company added it will also look at companies that provide AI-powered biotechnology or infrastructure services.
The AI-focused SPAC is Ho’s latest investment outside of his gambling business in Macau. The chairman and CEO of casino giant Melco International Development in 2021 listed his first SPAC on the New York Stock Exchange, raising $169 million. Two years later, the blank-check company completed a $23 billion business combination with VinFast Auto, Vietnam’s electric-vehicle manufacturer controlled by the country’s richest person Pham Nhat Vuong.
VinFast, which had a tiny free float of less than 1% at the time it went public, saw its stock inexplicably skyrocketed to a peak market cap of $190 billion on August 28, 2023. Its shares, however, have since then plunged more than 95%.
And in 2022, another SPAC controlled by Ho applied to raise capital on the Hong Kong stock exchange, but its application has since lapsed.
Meanwhile, Melco Resorts & Entertainment, a subsidiary of Melco International Development, announced in July last year the opening of a $662 million hospitality and gaming complex in the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. The development marked Melco’s first foray into Europe, after Beijing’s crackdown on capital outflow through gambling in Macau took a hit on the territory’s casino-driven economy and hurt the earnings of casino operators.
The son of late casino legend Stanley Ho, Lawrence saw his fortune tumble following Beijing’s years-long clamp down in the Asian gaming hub. After appearing on Hong Kong’s 50 Richest list for a decade, Lawrence dropped off the ranking this year.
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