Introduction to SPACs vs. IPOs - A Panel Discussion

Zoom Virtual Event: Wednesday, April 21st, 2020 from 12:00 to 1:00pm CDT

 Guest  Speakers: Brian De Lucia, Travis Dowle, Andrew Lom, and Tom Savage,

with James Burron moderating the panel.

Over half of all IPOs in 2020 were Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPAC).  Over the course of 2020 blank-check companies raised over $80 billion, and so far in 2021 that figure has surpassed $70 billion, accounting for over 70% of the market for IPOs.  Are you interested in learning about SPACs and what they are?  How they compare to a traditional IPO and why we are seeing so much capital being raised this way?

Please join us for a live virtual event as we discuss the details and evolution of SPACs. Our panel of industry experts includes Brian DeLucia, Managing Partner at Arrivato LLC; Travis Dowle, President and Fund Manager of Maxam Capital Management Ltd.; Andrew Lom, Partner at Norton Rose FulBright US LLP; and Tom Savage, Portfolio Manager at Picton Mahoney Asset Management.  The discussion will be moderated by James Burron, President of the Canadian Association of Alternative Strategies & Assets.

Guest Speaker Biographies: 

Brian DeLucia

Managing Partner

Arrivato LLC

Brian DeLucia is a Managing Partner of Arrivato LLC, a Single Family Office created from a track record through land and building development within the real estate industry.  Brian spends most of his time reviewing prospective masterplan and multi-family development opportunities, fiber, cell tower portfolios, lower middle market operating companies, esoteric scenarios, and special situations. Brian also works closely on leveraging his organization’s experience to resolve challenges and elevate businesses within traditional economic driving industries that create better places to live and work; creating more jobs; improving overall economics and address widespread societal challenges. He also serves on the board of multiple companies and within the family office community to provide an alternative voice of leadership. 

Travis Dowle, CFA

President & Fund Manager

Maxam Capital Management Ltd.

Travis Dowle is the President of Maxam Capital Management Ltd. Travis began his career in 1996 with MK Wong & Associates, which was later acquired by HSBC Asset Management. Travis left HSBC in 2007 to lead public market investments for a family office/private investment group, before he founded Maxam in 2009. Travis is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario and holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation.

Andrew James Lom

Partner

Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP

Andrew Lom, a partner in the New York office of Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP, is co-head of the firm's Asset and Wealth Management International Business Group for the United States and a member of the firm's global FinTech team.  He represents family offices, funds and financial institutions in transactional and regulatory matters, including with respect to fund formations, private equity and debt transactions, cross-border structuring, co-investments and joint ventures, investment due diligence, side letter negotiations, venture capital financings, trading and derivatives transactions, structured products and investment adviser registration.

Tom Savage, CFA

Portfolio Manager, Merger Arbitrage

Picton Mahoney Asset Management

Tom Savage joined Picton Mahoney Asset Management in January 2020 following the acquisition of the merger arbitrage strategies from Vertex One Asset Management.  Tom joined Vertex One in January 2010 and has an extensive background in alternative strategies, specializing in merger and event-driven arbitrage. Prior to joining Vertex One, Tom was a proprietary trader with CIBC World Markets Inc. where he was responsible for equity and derivatives arbitrage as well as special situations strategies. Formerly, he worked in private equity at Birch Hill Equity Partners Management Inc. and began his career as an equity analyst at KBSH Capital Management Inc. Tom holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Queen’s University, an MBA from Harvard Business School and is also a CFA charterholder.

Moderator Biography: 

James Burron

President

Canadian Association of Alternative Strategies & Assets (CAASA)

James Burron co-founded The Canadian Association of Alternative Strategies and Assets (“CAASA”) in response to industry support for a Canadian alternatives association to serve all aspects including: hedge / alternative strategies, private lending, private real estate, private equity, plus emerging areas where Canada is a leader such as digital assets / blockchain and robo-advisors.  Prior to CAASA, James was the Chief Operating Officer of AIMA Canada where his team of three worked with 12 committees to produce 50-60 events per annum across Canada, organize 100+ committee meetings, and increase member numbers over his 7-year tenure from 66 to 164 corporate entities. James also has experience in research and writing for the CAIA Association as well as serving on CAIA’s Exam Council and as a grader for the Level II portion of the exam.  He also had roles in institutional sales and FoHF structuring in Seoul, South Korea, as a Product Manager at ICICI Wealth Management, and an Investment Advisor at RBC Dominion Securities.  He graduated from Simon Fraser University with a BBA (Finance).