Deep sea mining group left in lurch after $200m disappears – by Ortenca Aliaj (Financial Times – October 20, 2021)

https://www.ft.com/

The Metals Company has big ambitions to mine the depths of the Pacific Ocean for rare earth metals used to power everything from iPhones to electric vehicles. The problem is that it is short on cash.

The Canadian start-up went public last month through a special purpose acquisition company but has been left high and dry by one investor who was meant to hand over 60 per cent of $330m it had been counting on to start digging but has now all but disappeared.

The $200m hole left in The Metals Company’s books by Ramas Capital Management, a little-known private equity firm run by former JPMorgan Chase analyst Ganesh Betanabhatla, has also raised deeper questions about the funding model underpinning the Spac playbook.

The Metals Company, formerly known as DeepGreen Metals, made its debut on the stock market last month after a deal with Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corporation six months earlier. Despite projecting that it will have no revenues for at least another three years, the company was valued at almost $3bn.

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