Sunday, 1 August 2021

Zain to invest USD 10 mn in Swvl listing

Kuwaiti telecoms provider Zain will invest USD 10 mn in Swvl’s newly announced merger with US-based SPAC Queen’s Gambit, ahead of the ride-sharing app’s highly anticipated debut on the Nasdaq, according to a company statement (pdf) to the Kuwaiti bourse. Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital, which bills itself as “100% female-led,” had reportedly raised some USD 300 mn from a group of unnamed investors earlier this year and brought on an additional USD 45 mn in investment through the underwriters’ over-allotment option, valuing Swvl at USD 1.5 bn. It is not clear from Zain’s sparsely-worded statement whether this USD 10 mn investment is part of that fund raising round or part of another USD 100 mn private investment in public equity (PIPE) that is reportedly in the works and the Wall Street Journal says will include Agility, Luxor Capital Group LP and Zain Group.

Advisers: Law firm Ibrachy & Dermarkar was Swvl’s legal adviser on the merger, while Vinson & Elkins and Shahid Law Firm acted as legal advisers for Queen’s Gambit.

Correction (2 August 2021): A previous version of this story incorrectly said that Shahid Law Firm acted as Swvl’s legal advisor on the merger.

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