RIP Bill Ackman’s IPO
Life comes at you fast. Just 26 days ago, we wrote about Bill Ackman's plan to leverage his X account to help raise $25 billion for his new US closed-end fund, Pershing Square USA. But it appears that Ackman's $25 billion plan was too ambitious.
Yesterday, Bloomberg reported that Pershing Square had reduced its $25 billion target to around $2 billion, and now, Pershing Square has pulled its IPO entirely.
In a press release today, Ackman said, "Over the last seven weeks, we have met with many institutions and family offices, and held numerous town halls for Pershing Square USA, Ltd. While we have received enormous investor interest in PSUS, one principal question has remained:
Would investors be better served waiting to invest in the aftermarket than in the IPO?
This question has inspired us to reevaluate PSUS’s structure to make the IPO investment decision a straightforward one. We will report back once we are ready to launch a revised transaction.”
In hindsight, attempting to leverage one's X followers to raise a $25 billion fund was a stretch, even for one of America's most well-known investors.
In a press release today, Ackman said, "Over the last seven weeks, we have met with many institutions and family offices, and held numerous town halls for Pershing Square USA, Ltd. While we have received enormous investor interest in PSUS, one principal question has remained:
Would investors be better served waiting to invest in the aftermarket than in the IPO?
This question has inspired us to reevaluate PSUS’s structure to make the IPO investment decision a straightforward one. We will report back once we are ready to launch a revised transaction.”
In hindsight, attempting to leverage one's X followers to raise a $25 billion fund was a stretch, even for one of America's most well-known investors.
