Digital World Acquisition, which aims to take Donald Trump’s media company public, said it has directed Continental Stock Transfer & Trust to liquidate the SPAC’s trust and move the cash proceeds to an interest bearing deposit account. As of today, interest earned on cash held in the trust account is approximately 4.50% annually.
Digital World initially deposited $293.25 million into trust following a September 2021 IPO. Under the amended trust agreement, Continental would move the funds to an interest-bearing bank demand deposit account, or invest and reinvest solely in US government securities having a maturity of 185 days or less, or in money market funds.
The SPAC has scheduled an extension vote next Tuesday and has been pushing hard to persuade its retail investors to participate in the vote. If approved, Digital World would have an extra 12 months to close the merger with Trump Media & Technology Group.
The deal was announced nearly two years ago. In the time since, the SPAC has weathered an SEC investigation and agreed to pay an $18 million fine — if the Trump deal ever closes — for misleading investors. The SPAC also fired its founding CEO earlier this year. Read more.
