Oscar-winning visual effects company DNEG and Sports Ventures Acquisition today called off their proposed merger. As announced in January, the transaction implied an enterprise value of approximately $1.7 billion.
Sports Ventures and UK-based DNEG cited “current unfavorable SPAC market conditions and other factors” for the decision to cancel the deal.
The merger had a $350 million minimum cash condition. Sports Ventures holds in excess of $230 million in trust and had secured a $168 million PIPE to support the deal.
Spoerts Ventures CEO Alan Kestenbaum said the SPAC would forge on in pursuit of another business combination. The SPAC has until January 2023 to complete a deal, pursue an extension or liquidate.
DNEG has won seven of the last 11 Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects, most recently for Dune (2021). The company also created visual effects for the Netflix series Stranger Things.
DNEG recently announced revenue outperformance in a business update with strong year-over-year growth and a record pipeline of new business. Read more.
