FiscalNote, a legal data and analytics company, just announced that it plans to go public sometime next year through a SPAC merger with Duddell Street Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: DSAC). The deal was valued at $1.3 billion, which is unsurprising considering FiscalNote hit unicorn status after a $40 million funding round earlier this year.
FiscalNote provides data and insights on policy and regulation so companies can keep an eye on government activity that affects their business. Keeping up with government policy and regulation isn’t easy, but as CEOs and organizations face increasing regulatory pressure, it’s a necessary part of running a business. If a company isn’t up to date on the law, it could get through an entire pipeline before realizing its product isn’t up to code or violates a regulation it didn’t know about. These informational oversights can be costly, which is why 3,000 FiscalNote subscribers have invested in keeping up to date with government regulation.
FiscalNote’s cloud-based software uses proprietary artificial intelligence, machine learning and other advanced technologies to gather and analyze global legislative, regulatory and geopolitical data relevant to its clients’ businesses. Its user-friendly interface and information feeds deliver the most important legal information to businesses, cutting through noise so executives can make sure their business is in compliance with local, state and federal laws.
“When we founded FiscalNote in 2013, we set out to build a category creating technology company that would change the way organizations understand and act on the legal, policy and regulatory issues that mattered most to them,” FiscalNote co-founder and CEO Tim Hwang said in a statement.
The deal will also make history with Hwang becoming the youngest Asian-American founder/CEO on a major U.S. stock exchange.
Current FiscalNote equity holders — including Mark Cuban, Jerry Yang and Steve Case — will roll 100 percent of their equity into the new combined company, maintaining about 76 percent ownership. They will also be under a six-month lock-up and will potentially receive an earnout of additional shares if certain stock price markets are met.
FiscalNote isn’t the only company in the government tech industry announcing big news. Just yesterday, the tech accelerator Dcode announced a new subscription tier for its networking platform Nexus. As more companies move to D.C. with their eyes on government contracts, keeping up with policy and networking with U.S. departments is giving businesses more leverage for growth in the tech hub.
