Israel-based semiconductor firm Newsight Imaging Ltd. has signed a definitive agreement to merge with Vision Sensing Acquisition Corp. (VSAC), a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), in the industry’s latest SPAC deal.
Newsight develops proprietary 3D machine vision and LiDAR sensors and spectral vision chips. In addition, the company has two subsidiaries of note. One is Virusight, which designs and manufactures the SpectraLIT AI driven pathogen diagnostic solutions for antigen detection, including for Covid, HIV, influenzas, HPV, and others. The other unit is Watersight, which offers AcquaRing for water quality and process control.
The transaction could close as early as the fourth quarter of this year, the companies said. The transaction values Newsight at $215 million U.S., “which together with $102.5 million cash in VSAC’s trust account, assuming no redemptions in the business combination and the addition of proceeds of a possible financing of up to $40 million… results in a combined pro forma enterprise value of US$380 million,” according to a statement.
The challenge with many SPAC deals has been that some investors end up redeeming their shares in the SPACs before the deals have closed, with somewhat lower than hoped-for redemption rates ultimately affecting the proceeds to be realized by the business combination.
After this deal closes, the new combined company will be led by Eli Assoolin, Newsight Imaging CEO, who offered up a lengthy statement about the deal:
“Newsight has reached an inflection point of growth, with significant traction for our commercial products and multiple established strategic partnerships with industry leaders. We are privileged to have support from top-tier investors, and prospective access to the U.S. capital markets following the closing of this proposed transaction, which will leave Newsight well-capitalized to provide our innovative solutions. We believe Newsight’s technology is strategically positioned for growth with the increasing need for advanced vision solutions in today’s smart machines and technologies, with multiple uses with enormous market potential. Our next generation solutions offer proprietary market leading featured eTOF technology for high resolution and affordable 3D vision, with cutting-edge spectral technology for IOT real-time portable sensing. With our successful history and focus on market pain points, we are confident we can provide shareholders with a compelling investment alternative that supports today’s need for vision solutions with high precision and no latency caused by image processing, and that are low priced and require low power consumption. We believe our solutions and efficiencies will deliver long-term value to investors in Newsight.”