SPAC backed by Trump Jr., Omeed Malik, Palihapitiya files for $260 million US IPO

(Reuters) -Colombier Acquisition Corp. III, a blank-check firm backed by Omeed Malik, filed for an initial public offering in the United States on Friday.  The Palm Beach, Florida-based company plans to offer 26 million shares priced at $10 each and is seeking to raise $260 million. U.S. President Donald Trump's son Donald Trump Jr. is one of the directors and has served as a partner at investment firm 1789 Capital since November 2024. Launched in 2022 by Omeed Malik and Chris Buskirk, 1789 Capital has the tagline "funding the next chapter of American exceptionalism" on its website. Malik was a prominent donor to Donald Trump's presidential campaign. Chamath Palihapitiya, dubbed Wall Street's "SPAC king" for his high-profile blank-check deals, will be one of the directors of the company. SPACs are shell companies that use their IPO proceeds to merge with a private company, thereby taking it public while avoiding the regulatory scrutiny of a traditional listing. The move is the latest in a series of ventures by the U.S. president's family, including a meme coin launched in January, and World Liberty Financial – a crypto company partly owned by the president. Donald Trump Jr.-backed firearms retailer GrabAGun went public after clinching a merger with Colombier Acquisition Corp. II, a special purpose acquisition company backed by Malik. Colombier said it would apply to list its units on the New York Stock Exchange under the "CLBR U" ticker symbol. Roth Capital is the underwriter for the offering. (Reporting by Anuj T in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas and Pooja Desai)

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