Airspan, the venerable supplier of mobile network equipment, is to go public for a second time, riding the wave of interest in Open RAN platforms.
Founded in 1998 as a spin-out from DSC Communications, Airspan focused on fixed broadband wireless systems and increased its prominence when it entered the then-hot WiMAX market in 2005. However, after the economic crash of 2008, it delisted from the Nasdaq exchange in 2009, when Oak Investment Partners took a majority stake.
But after a period of falling revenues and of losses, it is experiencing growth again, and sales are expected to rise by as much as 47% in 2021. This time it is not going public via a traditional IPO but using a mechanism that has been very popular in the hi-tech space in recent years – merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). Its SPAC partner is New Beginnings Acquisition (NBA), which is already listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Following the merger, Airspan will be listed under the ticker symbol MIMO.
The SPAC route has the advantage of protecting the company from the full unpredictability of the markets, which saw another big Open RAN name, Mavenir, cancel its own IPO last year.
The SPAC transaction is expected to raise $166m in net proceeds, says Airspan. NBA will hold a 17% stake. Two of its operator customers, Softbank and Dish, have committed to buy shares (Softbank is already an investor, as is its largest customer, Reliance Jio). Existing shareholders Qualcomm, Foxconn and Jio will retain stakes. Airspan expects to be valued at $822m once the merger is completed.
Although Airspan’s significant small cell deal with Sprint ended as a result of that operator’s acquisition by T-Mobile USA, it has added Rakuten Mobile, Turkcell and others to its roster, and is offering Open RAN implementations of its 4G and 5G small cell portfolio to tap into the rising enthusiasm for that architecture.
Airspan expects its revenues to grow by 47% this year to $254m and to reach $420m in 2023. This year it expects EBITDA of $12m, rising to $106m in 2023.
“This transaction is expected to help fund our growth plans and accelerate our vision of providing our customers with leading edge 5G networks. We are at the precipice of a significant capital-intensive upgrade as 5G deployments drive the future growth of existing mobile carriers, new market entrants, and private and enterprise build-outs that we believe will transform numerous industries,” said Eric Stonestrom, president and CEO of Airspan.