SPAC LINKED TO TRUMP’S MEDIA FIRM GET EXTENSION ON MERGER
Investors in the blank-check company that plans to merge with former President Donald Trump’s social media company have agreed to extend the deadline for closing the deal by nine months.
But the deal could lose its allure.
The centerpiece of its company’s offering is Truth Social, a right-wing alternative to Twitter — and Twitter has now reinstated Trump’s account, giving him the option of returning.
Patrick Orlando, the main backer and CEO of Digital World
Acquisition Corp., the so-called special purpose acquisition company, announced that shareholders had approved the extension during an online meeting Tuesday.
The shareholder extension keeps alive the potential for Trump Media & Technology Group to tap into the $300 million that Digital World raised from investors after its public listing some 14 months ago.
The extra time to complete the deal still doesn’t mean it is a certainty.
Federal prosecutors have been investigating potentially improper communications between representatives of the companies before Digital World’s listing last October and the unusual trading in Digital World securities before the merger announcement. The Securities and Exchange Commission is running its own investigation.
Their findings could torpedo the merger.
But Trump Media must now also confront its own viability, given that Trump is once again welcome on Twitter.
Over the weekend, Elon Musk, the billionaire tech entrepreneur and new owner of Twitter, reinstated Trump’s account.
The social media platform’s former management had suspended Trump’s account after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump’s supporters.
Trump’s banishment from Twitter was part of the inspiration for the creation of Truth Social, and it has been his main platform for communicating with supporters.
Trump has said he has no intention of returning to Twitter.
Also, a licensing deal between him and Trump Media requires him to post on Truth Social several hours before posting on any other social media platform.
The licensing deal permits an exception for political messages.