Eldridge-Backed SPAC Scoops Up Ticket Reseller Vivid Seats

The deal values the pandemic-hit company at about $2 billion as Todd Boehly bets on a concert and sports rebound

Private companies are flooding to special-purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, to bypass the traditional IPO process and gain a public listing. WSJ explains why some critics say investing in these so-called blank-check companies isn’t worth the risk. Illustration: Zoë Soriano/WSJ
By Ted Bunker

A blank-check company backed by private investment firm Eldridge Industries LLC is betting that the shows will go on, once disruptions from the coronavirus pandemic fade away.

The Eldridge-sponsored special-purpose acquisition company, Horizon Acquisition Corp. , plans to combine with private equity-backed Vivid Seats Inc. in a transaction that would give the Chicago-based reseller of theater, concert and sports tickets an enterprise value of about $2 billion.

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