Why More Growth Companies Are Looking Beyond the Traditional IPO
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Enhanced Games at Resorts World Las Vegas. PHOTO: FACEBOOK@ENHANCEDGAMES
Enhanced Games reached the public markets in less than six months.
In an era where traditional IPOs can take more than a year to complete, the speed of the company’s merger with A Paradise Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: APAD) stands out, particularly given the significantly tighter regulatory scrutiny surrounding SPAC transactions since 2021.
The transaction highlights why some growth-stage companies are evaluating special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) as a viable alternative to the traditional IPO process.
Led by Dr. Aron D’Souza and backed by investors including Peter Thiel and Christian Angermayer, Enhanced Games announced its Business Combination Agreement with APAD in November 2025. The transaction closed in May 2026, bringing the company to the public markets materially faster than the timeline typically associated with a conventional IPO.
For decades, the traditional IPO has been considered the default route for private companies entering the public markets. But for many high-growth businesses today, the process has become increasingly slow, expensive, and difficult to execute efficiently.
A conventional IPO can take well over a year to prepare, involving extensive audits, regulatory reviews, underwriter coordination, investor roadshows, and careful timing against market conditions. During that period, companies remain exposed to volatility, shifting investor sentiment, and delayed access to capital. According to EY, many companies postponed planned IPOs amid market volatility and uncertainty surrounding U.S. tariff announcements, highlighting how sensitive IPO execution can be to broader market conditions.
For businesses operating in fast-moving industries, timing matters. Delayed access to liquidity can slow expansion, hiring, acquisitions, partnerships, and product development at critical stages of growth.
That is one reason why the merger between Enhanced Games and APAD is notable. The SPAC structure allowed Enhanced Games to negotiate valuation, governance terms, and financing arrangements early in the process, compressing many of the steps normally associated with a conventional IPO into a single transaction.
Enhanced Games operates across sports, media, performance science, and wellness, sectors that require significant upfront investment and rapid execution. Earlier access to public capital provided the company with liquidity, visibility, and strategic flexibility at an important stage of growth.
The public listing also gives the company tradable equity that can potentially support acquisitions, partnerships, athlete compensation structures, sponsorship arrangements, and future fundraising initiatives. These capabilities are particularly relevant in industries evolving as rapidly as sports entertainment, wellness, and human-performance science, where speed itself can become a competitive advantage.
The deal also highlights one of the SPAC market’s core advantages: the ability to combine capital raising and public-market entry within a single process.
Beyond speed, the SPAC structure offered Enhanced Games another major advantage: earlier visibility into valuation.
In a traditional IPO, pricing is largely determined near the end of the process through institutional book-building and investor demand during the roadshow phase. Even late-stage IPO candidates can face valuation cuts, downsized offerings, or postponed listings if market conditions weaken.
Recent IPO markets have repeatedly demonstrated this risk. Instacart went public in 2023 at an approximate US$9.9 billion valuation, which is dramatically below the US$39 billion private valuation it achieved during the 2021 market peak. Similarly, WeWork’s failed IPO attempt became one of the clearest examples of how rapidly investor sentiment can shift during the IPO process.
SPAC mergers operate differently.
Enhanced Games secured an implied enterprise valuation of approximately US$1.2 billion months before closing the transaction. While the merger still required SEC review and shareholder approval, the company gained significantly greater visibility into deal economics much earlier in the process.
That certainty is particularly valuable for growth companies whose valuations are tied more closely to long-term platform potential than near-term profitability.
Rather than relying entirely on shifting IPO market sentiment, the SPAC structure allowed Enhanced Games to negotiate around its broader growth strategy and future expansion plans from the outset.
The Enhanced Games transaction also reinforces why some growth-stage companies evaluate SPACs as an alternative to the traditional IPO process.
Traditional IPO investors often prefer businesses with long operating histories, stable earnings, and predictable growth profiles. Many expansion-stage companies simply do not fit that model yet, even if their long-term opportunities are substantial.
SPACs offer a different pathway.
Instead of waiting years to achieve the operational maturity typically expected in a conventional IPO, companies can access public-market capital earlier while still in growth mode.
For Enhanced Games, early access to the public markets provides more than capital. Public equity can support acquisitions, partnerships, athlete compensation structures, sponsorship arrangements, and future fundraising efforts. These capabilities are particularly important in sectors evolving as rapidly as sports entertainment, wellness, and human-performance science, where speed itself can become a competitive advantage.
The transaction also highlights how the SPAC market has evolved since the speculative boom of 2020 and 2021.
Today’s de-SPAC environment operates under significantly tighter regulatory scrutiny, including enhanced disclosure requirements, greater SEC oversight, and stricter treatment of projections and liability standards.
The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance noted that redemption rates spiked in 2022, in some cases approaching 100%, contributing to a significant slowdown of the SPAC activity.
In response to rising investor concerns and regulatory pressure, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission adopted enhanced SPAC disclosure and liability rules in 2024 designed to align de-SPAC transactions more closely with traditional IPO standards. Sponsors also faced greater pressure to demonstrate financing certainty, stronger disclosures, and more credible post-merger execution.
Enhanced Games completed its transaction within this more disciplined environment.
Its Form S-4 included audited financial statements, governance disclosures, transaction details, and extensive risk-factor analysis subject to SEC review. The company also supplemented SPAC trust proceeds with a separately arranged US$40 million PIPE financing commitment designed to strengthen liquidity and improve deal certainty.
That structure reflects a more institutional and disciplined SPAC market than the speculative wave seen several years ago.
The Enhanced Games transaction demonstrates that, despite tighter regulation and a far more selective market environment, SPACs can offer certain growth companies a practical alternative to the traditional IPO.
For businesses prioritising speed, capital access, and execution certainty, a well-structured de-SPAC transaction may provide a more efficient route to the public markets, particularly when supported by credible financing, disciplined structuring, and strong investor backing.
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Bitmo Lab is testing an ultra-thin, bendable tracker built to fit inside items traditional trackers can’t
Updated
March 17, 2026 1:02 AM
Bitmo Lab's MeetSticker tracker. PHOTO: BITMO LAB
Location trackers have become everyday accessories for keys, bags and luggage. But as personal items grow slimmer and more design-focused — from minimalist wallets to passport sleeves and specialised gear — tracking them has become less straightforward. Most trackers are built as small, rigid discs that assume the presence of space, loops or compartments. That assumption has created a growing mismatch between modern product design and the technology meant to secure it.
Hong Kong–based startup Bitmo Lab is attempting to address that gap with a device called MeetSticker. Instead of the solid plastic casing typical of most trackers, MeetSticker is engineered to be flexible and ultra-thin, measuring just 0.8 millimetres thick. The bendable design allows it to sit within narrow compartments or along curved surfaces without altering the shape of the object. Rather than attaching to an item externally, it is intended to integrate discreetly inside it.
That structural shift is the core of the product’s proposition. By removing the rigid shell that defines conventional tracking hardware, MeetSticker can be placed in items that previously had no practical way to accommodate a tracker. Bitmo Lab states that the device connects through a proprietary network and a companion application compatible with both iOS and Android, positioning it as a cross-platform solution rather than one tied to a single ecosystem.
The implications extend beyond form factor. Objects without obvious attachment points — such as compact travel accessories or specialised tools — could potentially be monitored without visible add-ons. In doing so, the device broadens the scope of tracking technology into categories where aesthetics, aerodynamics or compact design matter as much as functionality.
Before moving toward retail distribution, however, the company is focusing on validation. Bitmo Lab has launched a five-week global alpha testing programme beginning February 9. Sixty participants will receive a prototype unit and early access to the app. According to the company, the programme is designed to assess durability, usability and real-world performance before a wider commercial release. Participants who provide feedback will receive a retail unit upon launch.
Such testing is particularly relevant for flexible electronics. Unlike rigid devices, bendable hardware must withstand repeated flexing, daily handling and environmental exposure. Early user data can help refine manufacturing processes and software optimisation before scaling production.
As with other connected tracking devices, privacy considerations remain part of the equation. Bitmo Lab has stated that data collected during the alpha programme will be used strictly for testing purposes and deleted once the programme concludes.
Whether flexible trackers will redefine the category will depend on how they perform outside controlled testing environments. Still, the introduction of a near-invisible, bendable tracking device reflects a broader shift in consumer technology. As everyday products become thinner and more design-conscious, the tools built to protect them may need to adapt just as seamlessly.